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Ministry of Health and the Environment holds technical Briefing on the Zika Virus

4th February 2016

In a major show of confidence, local medical officials have declared Antigua and Barbuda one hundred percent Zika free.

Chief Medical Officer, Dr Rhonda Sealey-Thomas during an emergency press Conference at the Ministry of Health and Environment’s Headquarters this week, reassured the public that as of the first week in February 2016, there has not been one reported case of the Zika Virus on island and neither has there been any sign of the epidemic in the twin island state.

When asked how it could be possible for one Mosquito to be transmitting three separate diseases, Sealey-Thomas explained in details how the Aedes Aegypti Mosquito is able to spread three different illnesses.

"The fact that Dengue, Chikungunya and the Zika are being transmitted by the same Mosquito, remember that it is a virus that is responsible for causing these diseases, and the viruses are similar and because they are similar, the vector and changes that they have to undergo would be similar so it is not really surprising that the same vector would be transmitting that virus, three separate viruses but because of the similarities they would be more predisposed to be in that particular vector, which is the Aedes Aegypti Mosquito”, Dr. Sealy-Thomas stated.

The CMO quickly dispelled that notion the Zika Virus was a Government Conspiracy, noting that world governments and world health bodies are working feverishly to get to the bottom of the Zika Crisis.

"There are a lot of conspiracy theories out there with regards to Zika, the issues of Genetically Modified Mosquito but what I can say is that the Government’s plan here is to control the Mosquito population and to keep the citizens and residents of Antigua and Barbuda free from diseases. People are trying to find a link between genetically modified mosquitoes and what’s happening now but the investigations are continuing, the World Health Organization, CARPHA, Centre of Disease Control, Pan American Health Organization, and International experts are working to find out the reasons behind the rise of Zika cases"

In a major show of confidence, local medical officials have declared Antigua and Barbuda one hundred percent Zika free.

Chief Medical Officer, Dr Rhonda Sealey-Thomas during an emergency press Conference at the Ministry of Health and Environment’s Headquarters this week, reassured the public that as of the first week in February 2016, there has not been one reported case of the Zika Virus on island and neither has there been any sign of the epidemic in the twin island state.

When asked how it could be possible for one Mosquito to be transmitting three separate diseases, Sealey-Thomas explained in details how the Aedes Aegypti Mosquito is able to spread three different illnesses.

"The fact that Dengue, Chikungunya and the Zika are being transmitted by the same Mosquito, remember that it is a virus that is responsible for causing these diseases, and the viruses are similar and because they are similar, the vector and changes that they have to undergo would be similar so it is not really surprising that the same vector would be transmitting that virus, three separate viruses but because of the similarities they would be more predisposed to be in that particular vector, which is the Aedes Aegypti Mosquito”, Dr. Sealy-Thomas stated.

The CMO quickly dispelled that notion the Zika Virus was a Government Conspiracy, noting that world governments and world health bodies are working feverishly to get to the bottom of the Zika Crisis.

"There are a lot of conspiracy theories out there with regards to Zika, the issues of Genetically Modified Mosquito but what I can say is that the Government’s plan here is to control the Mosquito population and to keep the citizens and residents of Antigua and Barbuda free from diseases. People are trying to find a link between genetically modified mosquitoes and what’s happening now but the investigations are continuing, the World Health Organization, CARPHA, Centre of Disease Control, Pan American Health Organization, and International experts are working to find out the reasons behind the rise of Zika cases", she added.

The medical official was also of the view that the Zika Epidemic did not catch Medical Officials off-guard as they were always expecting diseases, such as Ebola and the Zika to resurface at some point.

"Not by surprise because the Zika Virus has been around in Africa since 1947 and we had been expecting a re-emergence of these diseases, Ebola is one and Zika is another one and because people are now moving about more frequently, it takes a shorter time for persons to get from one country to another during the incubation period. Whereas before if you were travelling from Africa to the Caribbean it would have taken you weeks and the incubation period would have passed, now all it takes is a plane ride where u can get here in a matter of days so we were always expecting a re-emergence", Sealey-Thomas said.

Also present at the conference were Dr. Oritta Zachariah from the Medical Division, Pediatrician-Arlene Sorhaindo, Chief Health Inspector-Lionel Michael and Dr Raymond Mansoor-Gynaecologist and Obstetrician.

When asked if he concurred with the World Health Organization’s warning to women to avoid pregnancy at this time, Mansoor had this to say.

“We still don’t have all the answers to that question, because if someone gets bitten and has the virus, how long does it stays in the system, and if a non-pregnant lady gets the Zika virus and she gets pregnant three months later, would it be a risk factor, we don’t know those kind of logistical time lines as yet. I think though that it needs to be done on an individual basis so whoever is worried, she should go and seek her physician’s assistance because it is going to be difficult to just stop having children, and it is going to have a lot of implications on all fronts so it is a two edged sword, so the take home message today is protection and prevention”, Mansoor said.

Mansoor also urged women who are pregnant now to get an ultrasound as quickly as possible to ensure that the fetus is the size it should be for the current time frame.

"Prevention is the key for now and for those who are pregnant now and are worried, I would advise them to go and seek their physician’s assistance, get an ultrasound to see what the size of the head is to see if it matches the rest of the baby’s body or for the time frame and gestational age that they are at”, Mansoor concluded.

, she added.

The medical official was also of the view that the Zika Epidemic did not catch Medical Officials off-guard as they were always expecting diseases, such as Ebola and the Zika to resurface at some point.

"Not by surprise because the Zika Virus has been around in Africa since 1947 and we had been expecting a re-emergence of these diseases, Ebola is one and Zika is another one and because people are now moving about more frequently, it takes a shorter time for persons to get from one country to another during the incubation period. Whereas before if you were travelling from Africa to the Caribbean it would have taken you weeks and the incubation period would have passed, now all it takes is a plane ride where u can get here in a matter of days so we were always expecting a re-emergence", Sealey-Thomas said.

Also present at the conference were Dr. Oritta Zachariah from the Medical Division, Pediatrician-Arlene Sorhaindo, Chief Health Inspector-Lionel Michael and Dr Raymond Mansoor-Gynaecologist and Obstetrician.

When asked if he concurred with the World Health Organization’s warning to women to avoid pregnancy at this time, Mansoor had this to say.

"We still don’t have all the answers to that question, because if someone gets bitten and has the virus, how long does it stays in the system, and if a non-pregnant lady gets the Zika virus and she gets pregnant three months later, would it be a risk factor, we don’t know those kind of logistical time lines as yet. I think though that it needs to be done on an individual basis so whoever is worried, she should go and seek her physician’s assistance because it is going to be difficult to just stop having children, and it is going to have a lot of implications on all fronts so it is a two edged sword, so the take home message today is protection and prevention", Mansoor said.

Mansoor also urged women who are pregnant now to get an ultrasound as quickly as possible to ensure that the fetus is the size it should be for the current time frame.

"Prevention is the key for now and for those who are pregnant now and are worried, I would advise them to go and seek their physician’s assistance, get an ultrasound to see what the size of the head is to see if it matches the rest of the baby’s body or for the time frame and gestational age that they are at”, Mansoor concluded.

Ms. Debbie Francis
Communications Officer
Ministry of Health & the Environment
Redcliffe Street, St. John's, Antigua
Tel: 1(268) 721-5904