Many months into the Zika virus epidemic in the Americas and for the first time, the Bahamas have reported their first case. According to the Health Ministry, the confirmed case was recorded in New Providence. Officials say the case is in a Bahamian man who recently visited Jamaica.
The Bahama Journal reports that Health Minister Dr. Perry Gomez have the following details of the case in a press conference last week:
The male presented to a private physician at a private medical facility with symptoms including rash, fever, joint pains and headache. A blood sample was taken for testing and sent to a reference laboratory. A confirmed positive result was received on Tuesday, August 9, 2016.
“Healthcare officials at the Ministry of Health and the Department of Public Health and its Surveillance Unit, in conjunction with officials from the Department of Environmental Health (DEHS), have been collaborating and will continue to collaborate on a number of measures aimed at protection and prevention,” Dr. Gomez said.
Despite these reports that the virus was contracted outside of the country, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) has added the Bahamas, along with the Cayman Islands and the US, as one of the new countries with confirmed vector-borne autochthonous transmission of Zika virus.
We contacted the Bahamas Health Ministry for more clarification on the Zika situation and will update as soon as we know something.
Related:
- Dengue immunization program begins in Paraná, Brazil
- Zika ‘Public Health Emergency’ declared for Puerto Rico, Florida local transmission cases now 28
- Barbados report increase in dengue fever in 2016
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