Emergency in Brazil after 2,400 babies born with brain damage

Brazilian health authorities sounded the alarm about Pathogen, known as Zika, a mosquito-borne virus that they believe could be cause of thousands of infants born with damaged brain. Zika, a virus with serious neurological complications, was first discovered in forest monkeys in Africa over 70 years ago in the West Nile. Brazil’s health ministry found the Zika virus in a baby with microcephaly, after autopsy- a rare condition in which infants are born with shrunken skulls. Brazil is now investigating further 2500 suspected cases of microcephaly, as 29 deaths infant deaths were attributed to Zika. In situation in Brazil’s Pernambuco, is so dire the local pediatric infectious diseases specialist Angela Rocha, even advised women in their town to hold off on getting pregnant as she suspects babies of several generation could be affected. The health ministry is ending truckloads of larvicide  and eradication teams to house to house where aedes aegypti mosquito that carries the virus could breed.

The World Health Organisation, has been closely monitoring the spread of the virus in Brazil as well as  West African nation of Cape Verde, Panama and Honduras.