Zika virus infects 6 patients, including 2 pregnant women, in Pune

MAHARASTRA,JULY 2 : Six people, including two pregnant women, have been infected with the Zika virus infection in Pune, health officials said on Monday. Four cases were reported in the city’s Erandwane area and two in the Mundhwa area.

The virus is transmitted through the bite of an infected Aedes mosquito, which is also known to transmit infections like dengue and chikungunya. The virus was first identified in Uganda in 1947.

Last night, a 16-week-old pregnant woman tested positive for Zika virus, bringing the current tally to six. Last week, a 28-year-old woman, who is 22 weeks pregnant, tested positive for the infection.

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The condition of two pregnant women is stable, according to health officials.

Zika virus in pregnant women may cause microcephaly (a condition in which the head is significantly smaller due to abnormal brain development) in the foetus.

Earlier, a 46-year-old doctor and his teenage daughter tested positive for Zika virus and their health condition is stable. The doctor developed symptoms like fever and rashes, following which he was admitted to a private hospital.

An official said the Pune Municipal Corporation was undertaking measures to curb breeding of mosquitoes such as fogging and fumigation.

“The Pune Municipal Corporation’s health department is conducting surveillance. As a precautionary measure, it is taking measures such as fogging and fumigation to curb the breeding of mosquitoes,” the official was quoted by news agency PTI as saying.

-PTI