Zika virus likely to present in PNG: Doc

 By EUNAR NOREEN KARATU  

THE Zika virus may have been present in PNG for years without being detected, according to the World Health Organisation.

World Health Organisation (WHO) epidemiologist Dr Boris Pavlin told The National that studies were underway to test the possibility of the  virus’ existence in the country. 

“Since it is a very mild illness in most people, it is possible that Zika has been here for years and we have just never detected it,” he said.

“It is possible that some microcephaly (a rare neurological condition in which an infant’s head is significantly smaller than the heads of other children of the same age) in the past has been due to Zika, but it is equally or more likely due to the many other potential causes of microcephaly out there.

“For instance, rubella virus, for which we have a vaccine in PNG but many women are not getting it.”

Pavlin also said there were rare instances of sexual transmission as well as trans-placental (mother to foetus) transmission, and potentially through blood donation.

“It has been found in blood intended for donation but all of these constitute a tiny proportion of the transmission, compared to getting it from mosquitoes.”