The Department of Agriculture and the city of Baltimore teamed up to deliver some precautionary action against the Zika virus that affected so many countries lately.
With a rising number of homegrown cases of Zika in Florida, pressure is climbing at the Federal level to limit the mosquito-borne virus associated with brain-related birth defects from spreading.
The spraying happened Sunday night between Cooldige and Benson Avenues and from Sharonleigh Road to S.Grantley Street in the city. These were the areas thought to have a high concentration of the type of mosquito that could transport Zika.
Zika can be transferred from a pregnant woman to her fetus. The infection throughout pregnancy can produce several birth defects. There is no medicine or vaccine for the disease yet. The mosquitoes that transmit the virus are aggressive daytime biters but can also bite at night.
Residents are happy with the preventive measures and consider these proactive steps for the community imperative. People living in the neighborhood that was sprayed say they’ve seen the number of mosquitoes increase within the past 2 or 3 years.
Residents also mentioned that everyone must step up to preserve the region protected.
The Food and Drug Administration started pushing all U.S. blood centers to begin screening for Zika, starting with 11 states: New Mexico, New York, Alabama, Hawaii, Louisiana, Arizona, California, Georgia, Mississippi, South Carolina and Texas. Dr. Peter Marks of the FDA mentioned that the goal of the advice is to ensure blood supplies for everybody that might need blood transfusions.
Moreover, this week the health officials announced the first case of the virus spread through sex by a Maryland man with no indications of the disease.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states 77 Zika cases in Maryland this year to date. They were all cases in people who traveled outside the country.
Health experts consider that targeting these mosquitoes at their origin is a top priority and that there are still many things we must learn about the way the virus is transmitted from person to person. The officials will also inspect homes and warn homeowners to get rid of any standing water where these mosquitoes could reproduce.
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