Brazil said yesterday that pregnant women should consult their doctors before travelling to there, but that no other restrictions were necessary regarding the mosquito-borne Zika virus, eight months before the nation hosts the Olympics.
The country’s health ministry said in a statement that a travel warning from US health officials reinforced precautionary measures already adopted by Brazil, such as recommending bug spray and long sleeves to protect against mosquitoes.
Brazil’s health ministry confirmed the Zika virus has been linked to a form of fetal brain damage in November after a surge of babies in the impoverished northeast were born with microcephaly, an unnaturally small brain.
The government has declared a national health emergency. – (Reuters)