Topic > A History of the Zika Virus

Due to its frightening spread and devastating outcomes, the Zika virus disease has recently made international headlines. Decades ago, the virus originated in the Zika forest of central Uganda, but the virus's modern reemergence far surpasses the 1947 epidemic that led to its discovery. The Zika virus is infamous for its unpreventable modes of infection, its incurability, and its calamitous and irreversible effects. The Zika virus spreads through the simple bite of an infected Aedes mosquito and causes malformations in newborns. Newborns infected with the Zika virus often develop what is called microcephaly, or small heads. Another factor that makes the Zika virus so alarming is the vast distance it has covered. Over the past seventy years it has spread from the African continent, to Asia, South America, parts of Europe and North America. This makes the Zika virus a pandemic or a worldwide phenomenon. Considering the most widespread cases over the past three years, it is important to know exactly why this virus is of concern, how it affects different patients, and how it could be prevented in the future. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay A recent outbreak of the Zika virus began in 2015. Since 2015, there have been 5,658 cases of Zika in the United States of America alone. On a global scale, the number of people affected is too high to track. The high morbidity rate is most likely caused by the fact that Zika is so easily transmissible. Whether contracted from the virtually imperceptible bite of a mosquito, through sexual contact with someone who has been bitten, or from an infected mother to her offspring, it is difficult to prevent contracting the Zika virus, allowing it to easily affect thousands of people. . Its high contagion rate makes it a matter of concern for the entire human race living in all parts of the world. Anyone is at risk of infection. The lack of a cure is also worrying. Not only is the Zika virus difficult to prevent, easy to contract and causes devastating microcephaly, but it is also incurable. Only treatments are available for minor symptoms, such as fever, fatigue, rashes, and joint and muscle pain. The Zika virus, however, does not have the same effects on everyone who is infected with it. Therefore, not all Zika virus patients should be treated the same. Four out of five people infected with the Zika virus show no symptoms; therefore, these people are often never aware that they have been infected with the virus. Symptoms of the Zika virus usually appear between two and seven days after victims are bitten by an infected mosquito. Those who develop symptoms are often mild and do not require hospitalization. As long as infected people receive plenty of rest and fluids in the body, the disease will not worsen and they will recover from symptoms in a week. If necessary, they may take medications such as ibuprofen or paracetamol to relieve pain. The Zika virus in most cases is not a cause for concern since it is quite rare for people with Zika to need to go to the hospital and it is rare for people to die from the Zika virus. Those who end up being patients in the hospital deserve some concern. They are physically no longer able to cope with the virus on their own and must rely on trained professionals to ensure their symptoms do not worsen. Those who succumbed to the Zika virus often had underlying diseases and risk factors that contributed to their deaths. Although it is rare, it is still entirely possible for a fatal outcome to occur from the Zika virus. The Zika virus.