First Zika patient in Spain carrying foetus with underdeveloped brain reported
Friday, May 6, 2016 @ 4:53 PM
THE first-ever case of a pregnant Zika virus victim in Spain whose foetus has an underdeveloped brain has been reported.
At present, 15 men and 24 women – four of whom are expecting babies – have contracted Zika in Catalunya, whilst in total 13 virus-sufferers in Spain are pregnant.
The woman in question caught the virus, along with dengue – also transmitted by certain tropical mosquitoes – on a recent trip to Latin America, and her unborn baby is said to be affected by microencephalea, meaning the brain is too small and has not developed properly.
The child may well suffer severe mental and physical disability for life and need constant care, possibly 24 hours a day, from birth until death.
But the mother wants to continue with her pregnancy and has refused an abortion.
Health authorities in Catalunya have called for 'calm', pointing out that a woman infected with Zika recently gave birth to a perfectly healthy baby and that neither the mother nor the child have suffered any complications.
And no cases of Zika transmission on national soil have been registered – all cases have been imported after their sufferers travelled to at-risk South or Central American countries, including the Caribbean, and Africa.
Read more at thinkSPAIN.com