Zika: ‘No threat’

THERE is currently no threat of the mosquito-borne Zika virus in the TRNC, Health Minister Faiz Sucuoğlu (right} has said.

He made the comments after media reports in Turkey said four people there had been infected in October.

Turkey’s Health Minister Ahmet Demircan said the Turkish government was closely monitoring the virus, which is transmitted via Aedes mosquitoes, and was taking the “necessary precautions”.

A report by the Turkish Health Ministry said Zika was spreading across parts of the Black Sea region and that it could reach “central Anatolia within five to seven years”.

Dr Sucuoğlu, who previously dismissed the existence of Aedes mosquitoes in North Cyprus, told Cyprus Today that routine spraying of insecticides was being carried out to prevent any outbreak.

“We aren’t aware of any kind of threat towards our country at the moment and haven’t been notified by Turkey of the situation, but could it spread in the future,” he said.

“For now, however, there is no need to panic as we are taking precautionary measures.”

Cyprus Turkish Biologists’ Association member Dilge Özerdem said spraying against mosquitoes should take place throughout the year.

“Whenever it is the season for mosquitoes to breed the ministry and municipalities should continue their spraying,” she said.

“However, it would be better for them to do it 12 months of the year, as any time mosquito habitats are found causes alarm.”

People with the Zika virus can have symptoms including “mild fever, skin rash, conjunctivitis, muscle and joint pain, malaise or headache”, according to the World Health Organisation.

Pregnant women and those trying for a baby are said to be at risk because the virus has been linked to birth defects such as microcephaly, a condition where a baby is born with a small head or the head stops growing after birth.