JUNEAU — An official with the state Division of Public Health says Alaskans are not likely to contract the Zika virus unless they have contact with people who have been travelling in affected areas.
Infectious disease program manager Michael Cooper says Alaskans could theoretically be infected through sexual transmission or blood transfusions, but not by the mosquitoes that carry the disease as they don’t live in the state.
Cooper says nine people in the state have been tested. He says results are pending in seven cases and have come back negative in the other two.
Contracting the virus is risky for pregnant women since it’s been linked to birth defects and for adults as it has been linked to a rare condition that causes the immune system to attack the nervous system.
