China confirms first Zika virus case

Zee Media Bureau

Beijing: China on Wednesday confirmed its first case of Zika virus in a man who recently travelled to South America.

According to China's National Health and Family Planning Commission (NHFPC), the patient, a 34-year-old male from Ganxian county of Jiangxi province, is now recovering with normal body temperature and fading rash.

The man had travelled to Venezuela and showed symptoms of fever, headache and dizziness on January 28, before returning to his hometown on February 5 via Hong Kong and Shenzhen, Global Times reported.

Zika virus is carried by Aedes aegypti mosquitoes and has been linked to a condition called microcephaly, in which babies are born with underdeveloped brains. Symptoms include fever, joint pain, rash, conjunctivitis, headache, muscle pain and eye pain.

The NHFPC said that according to evaluation by public health officials and experts, the risk of further spreading of the virus due to this imported case is extremely low due to low temperature.

A pilot field study using mosquitoes infected with bacteria is expected to be launched in China in March, according to a lead researcher.

The move is aimed at reducing the local mosquito population, which could pass the Zika virus to humans, said Xi Zhiyong, who heads the study.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared an international health emergency over the virus, which has spread rapidly in South and Central America, as well as the Caribbean.

(With Agency inputs)