CASTRIES, St. Lucia, Thursday April 7, 2016 – St. Lucia has been added to the list of Caribbean countries where Zika has been confirmed.
Two people have tested positive for the mosquito-borne virus – a 25-year-old man and a 28-year-old woman, both from Castries.
Ministry of Health officials are expected to provide details about the development at a press conference today.
Just last month, health authorities in the Eastern Caribbean nation were reporting that the country was Zika-free and that all efforts were being made to ensure it remained that way.
Since the detection of Zika virus in Brazil in 2015 to date, more than 30 countries and territories in the Americas have confirmed the presence of the virus, including several in the Caribbean.
On December 21, Martinique became the first island in the Caribbean to confirm transmission of the virus, and on March 24, the France Ministry of Health confirmed the first case of microcephaly related to Zika virus in Martinique.
The virus has been linked to the births of babies with microcephaly – small brains and heads – as well as the rare, neurological disorder Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS), which leads to muscle weakness and, in severe cases, paralysis and breathing problems.
The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) stated in its March 31 epidemiological update that Martinique, Suriname and Venezuela are among eight countries that have reported an increase in cases of GBS. It said that four other territories – French Guiana, Haiti, Panama, and Puerto Rico – have not recorded an increase but identified Zika virus-associated cases of GBS.
According to PAHO, other neurological manifestations associated with Zika virus are being detected in the region. Guadeloupe reported one case of myelitis with Zika virus detected in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), and Martinique has reported three cases of unspecified severe neurological condition among confirmed Zika virus cases.