El Dorado County health officials are monitoring information and guidance from the California Department of Public Health and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention regarding the Zika virus.

While the risks associated with the virus are currently low in California, health officials recommend individuals, particularly pregnant women, check and follow CDC travel advisories before going to countries with Zika virus outbreaks and also protect themselves from mosquito bites.

Between 2013 and 2016, a handful of Zika virus cases have been reported among California residents, all of whom acquired the virus during travel to other countries with Zika virus outbreaks. To date, there has been no known transmission of the Zika virus within California. The resident in Yolo County who tested positive for Zika had recently been out of the country.

According to the CDC, the following countries and regions have been affected by ongoing transmission of the Zika virus: American Samoa, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Curacao, El Salvador, French Guiana, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Martinique, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Suriname, Venezuela and Puerto Rico. Travelers returning from these areas should let their doctors know if they develop fever or other symptoms of Zika.

The Zika virus is primarily spread through the bite of an infected Aedes aegypti or Aedes albopictus mosquito; transmission may also be possible through sexual contact with an infected person. The mosquitoes that can carry the Zika virus are not native to California, but have been identified in several California counties. To date, these mosquitoes have not been detected in El Dorado County or the surrounding area.