A Summit County resident who traveled to an area where the Zika virus is common came home with the disease, local officials said Thursday, emphasizing the case is no threat to public health.
Who the person is and where the person traveled is unclear. Though local health officials declined to release any details about the case, they did say pregnancy is not an issue for the individual.
Dr. Marguerite Erme, medical director of Summit County Public Health, said specifics wouldn’t help people understand Zika because both men and women are impacted, as are many countries throughout the Caribbean, South America and Central America.
News of a local case comes a day after federal officials said after months of speculation they’re now certain Zika causes microcephaly, a birth defect that causes abnormally small heads. Additionally, national health officials in recent days voiced concern about a potential outbreak of Zika across the United States as the weather warms and mosquito season arrives.
No mosquito-borne Zika virus cases have been reported that were contracted in the mainland United States. But about 350 people in the U.S. have been diagnosed with cases of Zika that have been connected to travel abroad, including 31 pregnant women and someone who contracted the virus through sexual transmission.
As of Thursday, 10 cases have been confirmed in Ohio residents who traveled to regions with the disease, according to the Ohio Department of Health.
Mosquitoes are spreading Zika in American territories of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and American Samoa. And the CDC forecasts those mosquitoes could reach up to 30 states in a haphazard line stretching from New York to northern California. In Ohio, the mosquitoes are projected to reach as far north as about Columbus.
President Barack Obama’s administration wants Congress to provide $1.9 billion to battle the spread of Zika in the U.S.
Pregnant women in Summit County have little to fear if they don’t travel to regions of the world impacted by the virus, Erme said Thursday.
The local health department only announced Summit County’s first case because the state of Ohio is releasing the information and because it was an opportunity to remind people about what they should do when traveling, she said.
“Diseases don’t stay where you were when you travel. They can come back,” she said. “It’s important for people who do travel to take precautions.”
Erme suggested people visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s website (cdc.gov) for detailed information and updates as scientists learn more about the disease.
But some highlights to prevent Zika when traveling include doing the same thing as preventing other mosquito-borne disease: Wear long-sleeve shirts, pants and insect repellent containing deet.
The CDC also provides advice for travelers after they return to the U.S. because Zika can be sexually transmitted.
Men who travel to Zika-prone areas and experience a rash, muscle aches or other Zika symptoms should abstain from sex or use condoms for at least six months, the CDC said.
Men who have traveled to those areas without experiencing illness should still abstain from sex or use condoms for at least eight weeks, the CDC said.
Erme also reminded Ohioans who have no intention of traveling to try to curtail mosquitoes locally by taking away their breeding ground — standing water in birdbaths, outdoor plant pots and other locations gathering water.
Amanda Garrett can be reached at 330-996-3725 or agarrett@thebeaconjournal.com.