Thailand, Brazil and Co What pregnant travelers should be aware of in Zika areas

Zika danger: Pregnant women should refrain from avoidable travel in risk areas

Since Brazil was plagued by a severe Zika epidemic, many pregnant women prefer to avoid the South American country. However, there are regions in other parts of the world where the dangerous virus is widespread. Health experts advise pregnant women and women who want to get pregnant from traveling to such risk areas.

Zika virus can lead to skull malformations in babies

Health experts say the Zika virus is not fatal, but it can cause neonatal skull malformations. In the so-called "microcephaly" children are born with an unusually small head, which can lead to brain malformations. Because the virus is found in many parts of the world, pregnant women and women who want to have children should carefully consider which countries they can travel to.

Not only in Brazil, but also in many other countries such as Thailand, the mosquito-borne Zika virus is widespread. Pregnant women should therefore carefully consider where they are going, as there is a risk of early childhood malformations in the case of an infection of the woman. (Image: tacio philip / fotolia.com)

Pregnant women should be better off traveling in risk areas

The World Health Organization (WHO) has categorized the countries affected by the Zika virus into different categories depending on the risk of transmission.

The Federal Foreign Office (AA) has endorsed this assessment and recommends that "pregnant women and women who want to become pregnant should refrain from avoidable travel" in WHO category 1 or 2 regions, "as there is a risk of early childhood malformations in women is ".

Many travel and safety information for countries like Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Maldives has recently been updated.

"The transfer risk can vary considerably both regionally and seasonally," writes the AA, for example, in the notes to Thailand.

"In unavoidable journeys, care must be taken to ensure consistent use of personal protective measures to prevent mosquito bites all day," the Office wrote in an earlier communication.

Currently not so many infections

But not all experts see the situation so dramatically. For example, Professor Tomas Jelinek of the Center for Travel Medicine (CRM) does not advise pregnant women and women who want to have children to travel to areas in categories 1 and 2.

According to a news agency dpa, the expert said that there are currently not many infections. "But you have to point out Zika," said the doctor.

However, the same applies to malaria and dengue, which are also potentially dangerous for pregnant women. All of these diseases are transmitted by mosquitoes.

"Travelers from affected areas who experience Zika-type symptoms in the following weeks should see a doctor and point out the journey," the CRM writes on its website.

Typical symptoms include rash, muscle, joint and headache, conjunctivitis and fever, with symptoms usually occurring within three to twelve days after an infectious mosquito bite. (Ad)