More Zika infections in Germany confirmed so far six cases

Another Zika case in Germany: Infection confirmed at Dusseldorf patient
After it was announced recently that there were several Zika cases in Germany, another infection was confirmed. In a patient in Dusseldorf, the dangerous virus was detected. It is the sixth case of contagious infectious disease in Germany.
WHO has declared a global emergency
For months, the dangerous Zika virus has been spreading in several Central and South American countries. Occasionally, the pathogen was brought by travelers in other parts of the world. Also in this country some cases were already known. It was not until Monday that the World Health Organization (WHO) had declared a global health emergency for the virus. Now another Zika infection has become known in Germany. It is now the sixth case in the Federal Republic.

More and more people in Germany are getting involved. Picture: nechaevkon - fotolia

Another Zika case in Germany
According to a report by the news agency dpa, the Düsseldorf University Hospital reported that the patient had become infected with mosquito-borne virus after a stay in Venezuela and had come to the hospital with typical symptoms. The Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine in Hamburg had confirmed the presumptive diagnosis of the Dusseldorf doctors on Tuesday, as the Institute of the German Press Agency announced on request. So far, in the context of the recent outbreak in Latin America, five cases of returned travelers were known to have contracted the virus. In earlier outbreaks also five travelers had introduced the pathogen to Germany.

Infection declined in Dusseldorf patients
The Bernhard Nocht Institute is currently the only Zika reference laboratory in Germany. The proof of this pathogen is considered difficult according to experts. According to the information, the man had already come to the tropical medicine outpatient department of the Liver and Infection Center last week. The patient had a fever, rash and conjunctivitis. After just a few days, the infection had subsided completely. The Zika virus is not fatal and leads according to health experts in about 20 percent of infected people to flu-like symptoms such as fever, headache, body aches and sometimes rash.

Unborn children endangered by virus
However, the pathogen is also suspected of causing pediatric skull malformations. In this developmental peculiarity, called microcephaly, babies are born with an unusually small head, which can lead to brain malformations, which usually leads to mental retardation. So far, however, has not been clearly established that the virus is the trigger for it. Microcephaly may also have other causes, such as rubella during pregnancy.

Fight against mosquitoes
The Zika virus is mainly transmitted by the mosquito Aedes aegypti. In Brazil, the country that is most affected, even soldiers are used against mosquitoes to have defeated the pathogen possible until the summer Olympics. In Germany, the Federal Ministry of Health plans a reporting obligation for diseases transmitted by mosquitoes. According to the information, this should apply to so-called arboviruses, which are transmitted by mosquitoes, ticks or sandflies. (Ad)