The dreaded Zika virus that had put Brazil under the scanner is finally under control as the country has declared an end to the public health emergency. Still, the threat is not completely over as WHO has said that the battle against the diseases is a continuing one and thus, the health department is also exercising caution by keeping a close watch on the situation.
The life-threatening Zika virus is not as dangerous as it was all these 18 months in Brazil as the country has called off the public health emergency over the disease. According to Voice of America, Brazil has lifted the emergency call it had given 18 months back but the WHO has asserted that the Zika virus is not leaving the country soon and the fight needs to be carried on to keep the virus under check.
This is why the health authorities in Brazil are still maintaining a strict watch over the situation. The secretary for heath surveillance has said that the end of emergency does not translate to an end of monitoring and assistance to the families who have been affected by the disease. He said that the health workers and organizations involved in the mission will continue to fight the virus.
Notably, a 95% drop in Zika cases has been observed in the period from January to April as compared to the last year, BBC claimed. In fact, the situation had begun to improve by the end of the last year only as WHO had also put an end to its international emergency.
If one remembers, the Zika virus had caused major turmoil in Brazil in 2015 after it came to the light that the virus can cause birth defects in children born to infected mothers. One defect called microcephaly that causes babies to be born with small skulls had become pretty evident as such babies were born and their photos also became viral on the internet.
