St. Vincent and the Grenadines has recorded an additional five cases of the mosquito-borne Zika virus.
The virus has been linked to microcephaly, a condition in which babies are born with underdeveloped heads and brains.
The five new cases, all of which have come from the northern Grenadine island of Bequia, bring the national tally to eight.
The Ministry of Health said that as a result of the new cases it has increased its surveillance and response activities to address this rising number of cases.
The Zika virus is transmitted by the aedes aegypti mosquito, which the ministry noted lives inside and around houses, and reproduces in any object containing still water.
The incubation of the mosquito requires 7 to 10 days, and once born the insect can live up to 6 weeks.
Aedes aegypti mosquitoes lay their eggs every three or four days.
A female may lay as many as 400 eggs over her lifetime. The eggs can resist drought conditions for over a year, and then evolve into mosquitoes when in contact with water.
The mosquito is most active and the risk of bites is greatest in the early morning and also in the early evening.
The Ministry of Health, Wellness and the Environment says it continues to intensify its efforts in a targeted manner and urges the public to continue to take the necessary steps to protect themselves.
Epidemiologist Dr. Rosmond Adams said it is important for citizens to remain vigilant and not let down their guard, and that they continue to take all measures to protect themselves from mosquito bites, thus reducing the possibility of contracting the virus.
He also reiterated that source reduction is critical if we are to win this fight against Zika.
I hope none of those cases are associated with pregnant women….
Bequia has no natural freestanding water. The problem is in the water tanks that people have under their own homes… You are breeding this problem under your own homes…. You can do something about it…..
Folks – you only need a very small amount of edible oil on the surface of the water to kill off these mosquitoes. I have never used coconut oil but it WILL WORK – Full fat milk will work too. The oil spreads across the water surface and the mosquito larvae that develop in the water cannot breath and soon die off. It only takes one treatment for this to work – obviously on-going treatments will keep the larvae at bay indefinitely and by using an edible oil no problem to you consuming it either. Do not rely on skimmed milk or evaporated milks as I don’t think they contain enough fat to do the job.
It doesn’t take a genius to sort this out but you have to do it yourselves… If you are waiting on the anyone else to deal with this for you then you may as well dig a hole and jump in it now.
If you are pregnant you cannot afford to risk your child’s life because of this.