Chatham-Kent's medical officer of health doesn't expect the Zika Virus to be a problem locally, as long as people take the necessary precautions.
Those who contract the virus will show very mild symptoms, but the children of infected individuals can experience birth defects.
"Fetal abnormalities are not that uncommon to begin with," says Dr. David Colby. "But the most concerning one seems to be microcephaly, which is a failure of the cerebral cortex and skull to develop normally."
The World Health Organization (WHO) called a global health emergency in February, after a spike in cases in Brazil.
While mosquitoes carry the virus in developing countries, the only Canadian case was sexually transmitted in Ontario last week. Colby advises expecting mothers to avoid travel, and for anyone staying put to behave responsibly.
"Practice safe sex, use condoms. The difficulty is when people want to start a family. The very process is the same if the male partner has been infected with the virus for three months," says Colby.
The WHO is currently coordinating efforts to develop a vaccine for the virus in health clinics and universities.
