Hawaii's Dengue Outbreak Could Shed An Important Light On Zika In The Us

Reuters/Oswaldo RivasHawaii has declared a state of emergency on its Big Island as it battles the local spread of dengue fever, a disease outbreak that experts think may foreshadow how Zika virus transmission might occur in parts of the United States. The declaration of emergency could help Hawaii authorities tap new funds to control mosquitoes that transmit the illness, which in turn could help the state lower the risk of the local spread of Zika. Both viruses are transmitted by the same type of mosquitoes and health officials have said places that have recorded spread of dengue are at risk of Zika transmission too. The dengue virus does not typically circulate in Hawaii, but since last fall the state has reported about 250 cases of dengue fever. Island residents have made up the bulk of the cases, but some tourists have also been infected. This scenario — some local spread following introduction of the virus — is what experts at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have cautioned could happen in parts of the United States with the Zika virus, now sweeping rapidly through South and Central America and the Caribbean. Zika virus, which causes mild flu-like symptoms in people who contract it, is suspected to be linked to a surge in births of babies with abnormally small heads — a condition called microcephaly.