Zika Virus and Pregnancy FAQs

Zika is a viral infection that causes mild symptoms and can be transmitted through mosquito bites, sexual intercourse, and from a pregnant woman to her fetus. Although Zika is not deadly, a Zika infection during pregnancy can cause microcephaly, a severe neurological birth defect.

Most people infected with Zika do not realize they’ve become infected. If any symptoms manifest at all, they are likely to be mild. Some common symptoms include:

Rashes

Fever

Headaches

Bloodshot eyes (conjunctivitis)

Joint pain

Muscle pain

A person infected with Zika can still transmit the virus to others, even if they do not feel ill at the time.

Infants born to women infected with the Zika virus have an increased risk of severe brain defects, including microcephaly. Microcephaly impairs fetal neurological growth, and babies born with this condition have smaller brains and smaller visible head size. Microcephaly is also associated with severe disabilities, including intellectual disabilities and developmental delays, difficulty walking and balancing, hearing and visual impairments, difficulty swallowing, seizures, and early death.

There is no known cure for microcephaly, nor any standard treatment. Microcephaly can range from mild to severe: in the more mild cases, a baby’s head may measure smaller than average, but no significant disability is present. In severe cases, the baby may experience a wide range of neurological and other health problems.

Currently, there is no vaccine to protect against Zika. The best way to prevent Zika is to avoid transmission.

Avoid mosquito bites. Wear clothing that covers your arms and legs. Use air conditioning to cool your home, or install screens over windows and doors to prevent bugs from coming inside, and sleep under a mosquito net.

Use insect repellent. Choose a product with ingredients registered with the EPA, such as DEET, Picaridin, IR3535, oil of lemon eucalyptus, or 2-undecanone.

Practice safe sex. Zika can be transmitted between partners vaginally, orally, and anally, whether or not an infected person shows symptoms. Use male and/or female condoms and dental dams, or refrain from sex throughout your pregnancy.

Travel with caution. If you’re pregnant, you and your partner should avoid traveling to areas with Zika. Zika has been identified in areas of South Florida, as well as Mexico, Cape Verde, Singapore, and multiple territories in the Caribbean, Central America, South America, and the Pacific islands.

There is no evidence to suggest that Zika can be transmitted through breast milk.

Zika is diagnosed through a blood or urine test. If either you or your sexual partner has recently traveled to a Zika-infected area, or are experiencing Zika-like symptoms, visit your healthcare provider for an evaluation.

If you currently reside in or must travel to, an area infected with Zika, you may want to consider if this is the right time for you to get pregnant. There are many forms of contraception available to you to help you plan for pregnancy. If you may have been exposed to Zika through travel or unprotected sex, you should wait at least 8 weeks before trying to get pregnant.