Virginia resident who traveled abroad tests positive for Zika virus

A health ministry worker fumigates a house to kill mosquitoes during a campaign against dengue and chikungunya and to prevent the entry of Zika virus in Managua, Nicaragua January 26, 2016. [Photo/Agencies]

WASHINGTON - A Virginia resident who traveled outside the United States has tested positive for the mosquito-transmitted Zika virus, state health officials said on Tuesday.

The adult resident had recently traveled to a country where Zika virus transmission was ongoing and the infection was confirmed through testing by US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Virginia Department of Health said in a statement.

"Zika virus is acquired through the bite of an infected mosquito. Because it is not mosquito season in Virginia, this individual with Zika virus infection poses no risk to other Virginians," Virginia Health Commissioner Dr. Marissa Levine said in a statement.

The Arkansas Department of Health on Tuesday confirmed that a resident of that state who had also recently traveled out of the country tested positive for Zika.

Levine suggested travelers planning to leave the country this winter for warmer climates check health travel advisories and urged pregnant women in particular to avoid Zika-affected countries.

The virus has been linked to brain damage in thousands of babies in Brazil. There is no vaccine or treatment for Zika, a close cousin of dengue and chikungunya, which causes mild fever and rash.

On Monday, the World Health Organization predicted the virus would spread to all countries across the Americas except for Canada and Chile.