More than 3,100 pregnant women in Colombia have Zika virus

Updated: 2016-02-07 03:38

(Agencies)

  Print Mail Large Medium  Small 分享按钮 0

More than 3,100 pregnant women in Colombia have Zika virus

A health worker sprays mosquito repellent on a pregnant woman's arm, during a campaign to fight the spread of Zika virus in Soledad municipality near Barranquilla, Colombia, in this February 1, 2016 handout photo supplied by the Soledad Municipality. [Photo/Agencies]

Norte de Santander, along the eastern border with Venezuela, also had the highest number of pregnant women with Zika - nearly 31 percent of total cases.

The country's Caribbean region, which includes popular tourist destinations Cartagena and Santa Marta, had more than 11,000 cases of the virus, the bulletin showed.

The government has said pregnant women with Zika are eligible to access much-restricted abortion services.

Many women struggle to find abortion providers even when they meet strict legal requirements and illegal abortions are widespread. On Friday, local media reported the first abortion because of Zika infection.

The government has urged women to delay pregnancy for six to eight months.

Unreported cases and patients with no symptoms of infection could mean that there are between 80,000 and 100,000 current Zika infections in Colombia, the government has said.

An estimated 80 percent of those infected with Zika show no symptoms, and those that do have a mild illness, with a fever, rash and red eyes.

Previous Page 1 2 Next Page

8.03K