Explainer: why’s the world afraid of the zika virus?
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Aedes aegypti mosquitoes have caused alarm in the past because they carry the disease dengue. Now, since the birth of a growing number of babies with deformed brains, people are fearful of
another disease this mosquito carries called Zika. Zika is being linked to a malformation of the brain in the foetus and outbreaks in Latin American countries have led to women postponing
pregnancies where possible. Zika is not a deadly disease, most people appear to recover without long-term effects, one in five don’t even have symptoms. There is no vaccine for Zika, and
once the disease has struck, there is little doctors can do to help the infants after they are born. Published: 01 Feb 2016, 7:08 PM IST