The World Health Organisation (WHO), on Tuesday said travellers should practice safe sex for no less than eight weeks after returning from areas with Zika infections, doubling the time period that was recommended in its previous guideline.
According
to WHO spokesman in Geneva, new studies had shown that the virus is
present in body fluids for longer than previously known.
The
Zika outbreak in Latin American countries including Brazil, has raised
concerns among scientists and athletes about the infection risk during
the summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro in August.
Zika
is mostly spread through mosquitoes, but WHO noted in a new guidance
document that mounting evidence has shown that sexual transmission of
the Zika virus is possible and more common than previously assumed.
"Men
and women who are planning to conceive a child or who experienced the
flu symptoms associated with Zika, should practice safe sex for no less
than six months after returning from Zika regions,’’ WHO recommended.
While
most Zika patients recover quickly, the virus could cause brain
malformations in unborn children, as well as other neurological
disorders.
An international group of 151
scientists demanded in an open letter last week that the games in Rio be
postponed or moved to avoid intensifying the spread of the Zika virus.
WHO
disagreed and argued that the best way to stem the spread was to take
precautionary measures, especially personal protection against
mosquitoes and practising safe sex.
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