The Hong Kong Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health is investigating an imported case of Zika Virus infection in a woman with a travel history to Ecuador and Peru.

Image/CDC
Image/CDC

The female patient, aged 31 with good past health, presented with headache, sore throat, nausea and vomiting since April 21 and consulted a private doctor on April 22. She developed generalised skin rash since April 23. She attended Alice Ho Miu Ling Nethersole Hospital on April 24 and was admitted on the same day for management. She has been in a stable condition all along and has now been put under isolation.

Her urine specimen tested positive for Zika virus.

She travelled to Ecuador and Peru on April 8 and returned to Hong Kong on April 21. She could not recall mosquito bites during travel or in Hong Kong. Ecuador and Peru are classified as areas with new introduction or re-introduction with ongoing transmission of Zika Virus Infection by the World Health Organization (WHO).

The incident has prompted health officials to again urge the public to adopt strict anti-mosquito measures and safe sex during travel. Pregnant women and those planning pregnancy should not travel to Zika-affected areas.

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