bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

sponsorType

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

Reuters

Thailand confirmed on Friday that the Zika virus had caused two cases of microcephaly, a condition that results in babies being born with small heads, the first time microcephaly had been linked to Zika in Southeast Asia.
“To summarise, we have found two cases of small heads linked to Zika, the first cases in Thailand,” Prasert Thongcharoen, an adviser to the Department of Disease Control, told reporters in Bangkok.
He declined to say where in Thailand the cases were found.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) said in a statement the cases were the first of Zika-linked microcephaly in Southeast Asia.
Prepare for global microcephaly epidemic, Zika researchers warn
Microcephaly is a rare birth defect that has been linked, in Brazil in particular, to the mosquito-borne Zika virus, which is spreading in Southeast Asia.
Health authorities in Thailand have confirmed 349 Zika cases since January, including 33 pregnant women. Singapore has recorded 393, including 16 pregnant women.
US health officials on Thursday recommended that pregnant women postpone non-essential travel to 11 Southeast Asian countries because of the risk of Zika.

The latest countries singled out by the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention are Brunei, Myanmar, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Maldives, Philippines, Thailand, Timor-Leste (East Timor), and Vietnam.
The CDC has already issued a “travel notice” for Singapore, and said such a warning would be considered for the new countries if the number of cases rose to the level of an outbreak.
Zika virus can live in eyes and could spread through tears, study suggests
Thailand’s confirmation of Zika-linked microcephaly comes ahead of China’s week-long “Golden Week” holiday with Thailand expecting 220,000 Chinese visitors, up from 168,000 for the week in 2015, Tourism Authority of Thailand governor Yuthasak Supasorn said.
There is no vaccine or treatment for Zika. An estimated 80 per cent of people infected have no symptoms, making it difficult for pregnant women to know whether they have been infected.
Thailand’s health ministry said on Tuesday it was investigating four suspected cases of Zika-linked microcephaly in three babies and an unborn baby.
The three babies were born with small heads but it was not clear from ultrasound results whether the 37-week unborn baby had a head size smaller than normal.
Zika virus now linked to hearing loss in babies, study finds
There are no specific tests to determine if a baby will be born with microcephaly but ultrasound scans in the third trimester of pregnancy can identify the problem, according to the WHO.
The ministry ruled out a link between Zika and microcephaly in two of the cases on Tuesday.
Zika, which has spread in Latin American and the Caribbean, is commonly transmitted through mosquitoes but can also be transmitted sexually.
Microcephaly in babies can lead to respiratory problems related to malformation of the brain, a very serious threat to the lives of babies in the first year of their lives.
Children with microcephaly face lifelong difficulties, including intellectual impairment.
Zika has been linked to more than 1,800 confirmed cases of microcephaly in Brazil, according to the WHO.


How mosquito-borne viruses chikungunya, dengue and Zika got their names

Chinese team links mosquito gut bacteria to disease-free zones, offering hope of biocontrol solution for dengue, Zika

Zika virus could treat childhood cancer, US researchers find

US scientists infect volunteers with Zika in hunt for vaccines, treatments

Zika virus

Thailand confirms 2 cases of Zika-linked microcephaly, first in region

There are no specific tests to determine if a baby will be born with microcephaly but ultrasound scans in the third trimester of pregnancy can identify the problem, according to the WHO. Photo: Reuters

FILE - In this Wednesday, Sept. 14, 2016 file photo, a worker from the Ministry of Health sprays mosquito insecticide fog in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, a day after two new Zika virus infection cases were detected in the country. On Thursday, Sept. 29, 2016, U.S. health officials are advising pregnant women to postpone travel to 11 countries in Southeast Asia because of Zika outbreaks in the region. The advisory targets travel to Brunei, Cambodia, East Timor, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Maldives, Myanmar, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul)

News

Asia

Southeast Asia