A five-year-old girl from Karnataka's Raichur district has become the first confirmed Zika virus case in the state, PTI quoted Health Minister K Sudhakar as saying on Monday. Sudhakar said the government was taking all the necessary measures and would soon issue a set of precautionary guidelines.
"We have got a lab report from Pune about the confirmed case of Zika virus. On December 5, it was processed and reported on December 8. Three specimens were sent out of which two were negative and one was positive, which is a five-year-old-girl. We are keeping a vigil," PTI quoted Sudhakar as saying.
The minister said that Zika virus infections have been discovered in Kerala, Maharashtra, and Uttar Pradesh a few months ago.
"This is the state's first confirmed case. It was found after the serum was screened for Dengue and Chikungunya. Typically, 10% of such samples are sent to Pune for testing, and this has come back positive," explained the Minister.
He stated that the government is being cautious and that necessary instructions have been given to surveillance (Health department) officials in Raichur and neighbouring districts to send samples for Zika virus testing if any suspected infection cases are found in any hospitals, adding that this girl had no travel history.
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The Zika virus disease is spread by the bite of an infected Aedes mosquito, which is also known to transmit Dengue and Chikungunya infections. The virus was discovered in Uganda in 1947.
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Noting that no new cases of Zika virus have been discovered in the state thus far, the Minister stated that the government is keeping a close eye on the situation.
(With Inputs From PTI)