Nine U.S. Pregnant Women Diagnosed With Zika

Nine pregnant women in the United States have been diagnosed with the Zika virus, including one woman who recently gave birth to a child with rare birth defects.

On Friday, The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention stated officials are currently looking into 10 other reports of pregnant women who are believed to have contracted the virus as well.

The CDC issued a warning to those who are planning to attend the Olympic games in Rio de Janeiro this summer, saying that Zika is a major risk in this area.

Zika has spread throughout Latin America and the Caribbean since fall of 2015 and is contracted through mosquito bites. Typically, it manifests itself through mild illness or no symptoms, however it can be dangerous for pregnant women.

Out of the nine pregnant women who have been diagnosed with Zika, three have delivered babies. Two of these babies were healthy, and one was born with microcephaly. Two of the pregnant women had abortions after discovering the fetuses had undeveloped brains, and two had miscarriages although the cause is unknown.

Although their exact locations are unknown, officials have released that two of the women are in Illinois, three are from Florida and one is in Hawaii. All nine women had previously traveled to places with Zika outbreaks including Puerto Rico, Mexico, Brazil, Guatemala and Honduras.

Because of these confirmed cases, the CDC is warning all travelers to use insect repellant when traveling to infected areas and continue to use it for up to three weeks after returning home.