Costa Rica has joined Panama, Nicaragua, Honduras and Guatemala in the list of Central American countries with autochthonous transmission of Zika virus infection.

Zika virus/Costa Rica Health Ministry
Zika virus/Costa Rica Health Ministry

The Americas now report 26 countries and territories with local transmission of the mosquito borne virus.

Is this just the beginning in Costa Rica?

Last week, Medical epidemiologist and newly-appointed coordinator of Costa Rica’s National Disease Vector Control Program, Rodrigo Marin Rodriguez said that Costa Rica could see up to 60,000 cases of Zika infection in a worst case scenario, according to a La Nacion report (computer translated).

Marin bases his “worst case” scenario on estimates from Colombia, which has 10-times the population of Costa Rica and are expecting 600,000 cases of Zika.

Earlier, The Ministry of Health of Costa Rica announced the strengthening of its actions to control vector-borne diseases like dengue, chikungunya and Zika.

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