Zika to impact Summer travel to Fla?

[rickybobby]

I wonder if the Zika threat will impact plans for trips to Disney and other Fla locales this year? I know I would be worried if I were a female thinking of getting pregnant or already pregnant. One of these counties impacted already is in Northwest Fla, not just the southern tip.

 

[Mark P.]

Regretfully, I'd say yes that folks would avoid certain areas. I'm an admitted news junkie and certainly not one to get overly paranoid, and we all know the media tends to hype the latest virus such as SARS and Bird Flu, etc.
But no doubt that this one's scarier, but again, I'm basing this on news and I did a check on CDC, and I'm light years from an expert on anything!
It's difficult to see those families abroad already impacted, and time will tell if it's affected a newborn here. Let's hope not, though.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

It's the next Ebola!

 

[Lynne M]

I doubt it. Mosquitoes are everywhere in the US. No reason to avoid just one state.

 

[HM]

It's the next Ebola!

Well, it doesn't look like it will kill you so it's not on that scale.....
It is scary for young females, knowing it has no cure and could impact future children.

I'm going to a sorority convention in Orlando this summer. There will be hundreds of women, young and old at it. I'm taking bug spray for my 20 yr old DD, who will be there with me, for when we go outside.

I will say, that I've never had a mosquito bite while in Orlando and I've been there many many times at different times of year. And I don't think DD has either....but mosquitoes love her, so better safe than sorry.

 

[pmaurer74]

the only times I get mosquito bites are while sitting on my balcony after sunset.

 

[Lynne M]

the only times I get mosquito bites are while sitting on my balcony after sunset.

Good point. I don't think I've ever been bitten at WDW. At home in PA...lots.

 

[wilkeliza]

Well, it doesn't look like it will kill you so it's not on that scale.....
It is scary for young females, knowing it has no cure and could impact future children.

I'm going to a sorority convention in Orlando this summer. There will be hundreds of women, young and old at it. I'm taking bug spray for my 20 yr old DD, who will be there with me, for when we go outside.

I will say, that I've never had a mosquito bite while in Orlando and I've been there many many times at different times of year. And I don't think DD has either....but mosquitoes love her, so better safe than sorry.

It is actually better if you let her get bit if you know she isn't going to have kids (birth control). Once you get the infection you are immune to it and as of now it is believed that once the virus is no longer active it won't cause birth defects and since you become immune you can't get the active virus again and you can't spread it either. The only thing stopping them from encouraging people to just get the infection is because of the chance you could have Guillain-Barré syndrome as a side effect.

 

[Micca]

I think it's too soon to tell if it will impact summer travel. A lot can happen in the next four months.

 

[HM]

It is actually better if you let her get bit if you know she isn't going to have kids (birth control). Once you get the infection you are immune to it and as of now it is believed that once the virus is no longer active it won't cause birth defects and since you become immune you can't get the active virus again and you can't spread it either. The only thing stopping them from encouraging people to just get the infection is because of the chance you could have Guillain-Barré syndrome as a side effect.

Interesting. My DD has Lyme Disease, so if I can help keep any other diseases away from her, I will.

 

[wilkeliza]

Interesting. My DD has Lyme Disease, so if I can help keep any other diseases away from her, I will.

Oh yeah if she is already battling Lyme Disease, I don't think it would be encouraged. I think it is just fit women. That is the real reason why some countries are saying wait to get pregnant as they believe going through one high season will end up with most of the population being immune by the next high season. That is of course if the virus doesn't mutate before then. The whole thing really is a tricky balance and no body knows the right or wrong thing to do. The get sick now was something I read this morning and is coming from countries with out great health care systems so who knows if you can trust the advice.

 

[aprilchem]

I'm supposed to take two business trips to Miami - one in late March and another in July. I'll be closely watching the Zika virus to see whether those need to be cancelled - although mosquitos are everywhere as some PP have posted, mosquito-borne diseases have historically moved from south to north in the US.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

Well so far nothing on the Orlando news suggests locals should be concerned. So I think altering summer plans at this point is unnecessary.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Zika is carried by a very specific type of mosquito, the Aedes species.

How is Zika transmitted?

Zika is primarily transmitted through the bite of infected Aedes mosquitoes, the same mosquitoes that spread Chikungunya and dengue. These mosquitoes are aggressive daytime biters and they can also bite at night. Mosquitoes become infected when they bite a person already infected with the virus. Infected mosquitoes can then spread the virus to other people through bites. It can also be transmitted from a pregnant mother to her baby during pregnancy or around the time of birth. We are studying how some mothers can pass the virus to their babies.

http://www.cdc.gov/zika/disease-qa.html

Also from the CDC:



http://www.cdc.gov/chikungunya/resources/vector-control.html

Zika likely not as devastating in the U.S.

As concerned as public health officials are about Zika, they highly doubt the virus will be as devastating in the United States as it has been in Brazil.

"You never say never, but I'm fairly sure we're not going to have a problem of great magnitude in this country," said Dr. Anthony Fauci, head of the National Institutes for Allergies and Infectious Diseases at the National Institutes of Health. "There will be some unfortunate cases, but nothing of the magnitude that the poor Brazilians are going through," he added.

So far, there have been about 20 cases in the continental United States, according to Fauci. All of those patients had traveled abroad to Brazil or other affected areas. The disease has not spread beyond those travelers, according to the CDC. Earlier this month, a baby in Hawaii was born with microcephaly. The mother had spent part of her pregnancy in Brazil.

Experts have several reasons for believing the spread of Zika in the United States will be much more limited than in Brazil. First, a similar virus, dengue, has never spread much in the United States. Over the years, nearly all cases have been among travelers, with transmission within the United States happening only rarely.

Experts believe cooler weather is a big part of the reason, as the mosquitoes that spread viruses such as dengue and Zika prefer hotter climates. "I'm very worried about tropical areas of the United States, such as American Samoa, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands," Petersen added.

The experts believe living conditions in the United States will also slow the spread of the disease, which occurs when a mosquito bites an infected human and then bites someone else.

Americans tend to live farther apart than people do in Brazil, Petersen noted. Also, air conditioning is much more common in the United States, and the mosquitos dislike cool air. And mosquito control measures in warm places such as Texas and Florida are very effective, Weaver added.

http://www.cnn.com/2016/01/26/health/halting-spread-of-zika-united-states/

 

[georgina]

I doubt it. Mosquitoes are everywhere in the US. No reason to avoid just one state.

There are a couple of types of mosquitoes which can carry Zika. The types that can spread it are already existing in the southern US and California, but it is not all types of mosquitoes right now.

My DD is planning to go to the Caribbean for her honeymoon this summer. As she is not planning to have kids for 4 years or so, I don't think she is planning to cancel.

 

[FINFAN]

WDW has incredible mosquito control from my experience. It's where I would head to to AVOID bites , lol.

 

[BadgerGirl84]

I think it's too soon to say. However, I have serious doubts that the only serious side effect of Zika is a risk of birth defect for pregnant women. I think other serious impacts will be discovered as they study it more.

 

[georgina]

I think it's too soon to say. However, I have serious doubts that the only serious side effect of Zika is a risk of birth defect for pregnant women. I think other serious impacts will be discovered as they study it more.

The virus has been around for 50 years. It is suddenly spreading fast, and is dangerous for pregnant women, but has not been shown to be that much of a problem for most people. I have seen reports of Guillian-Barre in some, which I would like to find out more about.

 

[missnic]

FWIW, there is another confirmed case in St John's county (St Augustine - NE FL), resulting from travel. The governor has declared a State of Emergency in several counties where cases have been confirmed. That should allow additional resources/funds to be available for mosquito spraying/etc to help keep them under control. WDW already does a decent job with pest control, so I would say that they will continue that and ramp it up if necessary. That said, mosquitoes thrive in Florida. We're a giant swamp, and we just came out of an unseasonably warm winter that did not kill them off like usual. We're not going to eliminate all of them. It's just a matter of time before it shows up in Orlando.

Now.. all of that aside, I do think that it will have an impact on certain groups of people as far as travel plans. If I were pregnant or planning on getting pregnant, I would probably alter my plans for the next month or so. As a healthy person who is not planning on pregnancy though, I'm not worried. After reading up on the symptoms on the CDC website (because the media panic hasn't even given us that info), it seems that it causes a mild fever/pain/rash/pink eye in otherwise healthy people. By summer though, it could be pretty much eradicated. Who knows.

 

[atricks]

Well so far nothing on the Orlando news suggests locals should be concerned. So I think altering summer plans at this point is unnecessary.

This is no longer true http://www.orlandosentinel.com/health/os-zika-update-central-florida-20160205-story.html

Confirmed case in Osceola (aka same county Disney's Animal Kingdom is in) It's also imported from "another country". If it grows larger I can see it affecting Brazilian tourists, but still too soon to sell.