- Title: Thailand confirms two cases of Zika-linked microcephaly, first in region
- Date: 30th September 2016
- Summary: BANGKOK, THAILAND (SEPTEMBER 30, 2016) (REUTERS) PUBLIC HEALTH MINISTRY OFFICIALS SITTING FOR NEWS CONFERENCE (SOUNDBITE) (Thai) ADVISOR TO THE PUBLIC HEALTH MINISTRY'S DEPARTMENT OF DISEASE CONTROL, DR. PRASERT THONGCHAROEN, SAYING: "To summarize, we have found two cases of babies with small heads linked to Zika in Thailand." VARIOUS OF JOURNALISTS SITTING AND LISTENING ADVISOR TO THE PUBLIC HEALTH MINISTRY'S DEPARTMENT OF DISEASE CONTROL, DR. PRASERT THONGCHAROEN, TALKING DURING NEWS CONFERENCE (SOUNDBITE) (Thai) ADVISOR TO THE PUBLIC HEALTH MINISTRY'S DEPARTMENT OF DISEASE CONTROL, DR. PRASERT THONGCHAROEN, SAYING: "We found no symptoms at all in the first case. For the second case, the mother was reported to have had only some rashes. We managed to find the disease by tracing back the history (of the mothers) in both cases." DIRECTOR OF THE EPIDEMIOLOGY BUREAU IN THE PUBLIC HEALTH MINISTRY'S DEPARTMENT OF DISEASE CONTROL, DR. THANARAK PALIPAT, TALKING DURING NEWS CONFERENCE (SOUNDBITE) (Thai) DIRECTOR OF THE EPIDEMIOLOGY BUREAU IN THE PUBLIC HEALTH MINISTRY'S DEPARTMENT OF DISEASE CONTROL, DR. THANARAK PALIPAT, SAYING: "Last year we tested less than a hundred people, this year we've tested 10,000 people. The number is incomparable. On the epidemic level, we concluded that nothing has changed from before and we are not in the status of an outbreak." OFFICIALS LEAVING NEWS CONFERENCE EXTERIOR OF DISEASE CONTROL DEPARTMENT AT PUBLIC HEALTH MINISTRY / SIGN READING (Thai): "DEPARTMENT OF DISEASE CONTROL"
- Embargoed: 15th October 2016 08:42
- Keywords: Zika health Thailand
- Location: BANGKOK, THAILAND
- City: BANGKOK, THAILAND
- Country: Thailand
- Topics: Health/Medicine
- Reuters ID: LVA00151RAZB9
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text:Thailand confirmed on Friday (September 30) 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 has 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, but added that one of the mothers had had no Zika symptoms, and the other only rashes.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) said in a statement the cases were the first of Zika-linked microcephaly in Southeast Asia.
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.
There is no vaccine or treatment for Zika. An estimated 80 percent of people infected have no symptoms, making it difficult for pregnant women to know whether they have been infected.
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.
Thailand emphasized that measures would be put in place to help contain microcephaly in babies, adding that the disease has not yet in the stage of an outbreak.
"Last year we tested less than a hundred people, this year we've tested 10,000 people. The number is incomparable," said Thanarak Palipat, the Director of the Epidemiology Bureau. "On the epidemic level, we concluded that nothing has changed from before and we are not in the status of an outbreak."
Zika, which has spread in Latin American and the Caribbean, is commonly transmitted through mosquitoes but can also be transmitted sexually.
Zika has been linked to more than 1,800 confirmed cases of microcephaly in Brazil, according to the WHO. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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