Until recently, few people had heard of Zika virus because it was considered a very rare and insignificant virus.

The virus was discovered in America’s Easter Islands, and then it spread to Brazil which has been battling the largest Zika outbreak thus far, with more than a million people infected. Today, the virus has been identified in 20 other countries and still spreading explosively.

The outbreak of the Zika virus has caught the world by surprise and the seriousness of its nature has prompted the World Health Organisation (WHO) to declare it a global public health emergency.

Zika virus causes a mild illness in humans, known as Zika fever, and there is currently no vaccine for it.

The virus is transmitted to people primarily through the bite of an infected Aedes species mosquito. These mosquitoes typically lay eggs in and near stagnant water, say, buckets, bowls, and flower vases, or anywhere else water accumulates. They live indoors and outdoors with people and they are aggressive daytime biters.

They can also bite at night, according to the Ministry of Health.

Mosquitoes also become infected when they bite on a person already infected with the virus. Infected mosquitoes can then spread the virus to other people through bites. Symptoms of Zika virus disease include fever, rash, joint pain, and conjunctivitis (red eyes). The illness is usually mild with symptoms lasting from several days to a week.

Research indicates that the Zika virus usually remains in the blood of an infected person for only a few days to a week.

Who is most at risk?

Pregnant women are at a great risk and could cause birth defects to babies.

The virus has been linked to thousands of babies being born with underdeveloped brains. This condition is medically known as microcephaly.

The virus does not cause infections in an infant that is conceived after the virus is cleared from the blood. There is currently no evidence that Zika virus infection poses a risk of birth defects in future pregnancies. Therefore, children conceived after the virus has left the bloodstream may be born without its effects.

A mother already infected with Zika virus near the time of delivery can pass on the virus to her newborn around the time of birth, but this is very rare. It is, however, possible that Zika virus could be passed on from mother to fetus during pregnancy. This mode of transmission is currently under investigation.

There is no evidence yet that infants can be infected through breastfeeding.

Reports also indicate that the Zika virus can be spread through blood transfusion and sexual contact.

This is perhaps the most alarming fact about Zika virus as the interconnection of cities across the world through flights and the current ease in global travel leaves even Zika unprone areas at risk.

How safe is Rwanda?

Rwanda and other African countries are popular tourist destinations. It is, therefore, worth noting that the fast spread of the virus should not be taken lightly. It is spreading rapidly, so measures to contain it ought to be put in place in case of an outbreak to avoid a further strain on African health care systems after the Ebola outbreak.

In a statement, the Rwandan Ministry for Health says that it has strengthened its surveillance system and a technical working group has been set up to contain any possible outbreak. It further clarifies that no Zika fever case has been reported in Rwanda.

Prior to 2015, Zika virus outbreaks had occurred in African countries such as the Central African Republic, Egypt, Gabon, Sierra Leone, Uganda, and Tanzania.

The virus is said to have first been discovered in Uganda in 1947.

However, the Ugandan Ministry for Health, in a statement, clarified that the current virus spreading in South America is a different species from the one once recorded in Uganda.

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