CDC Revises Sex Advice on Zika

Couples in which one partner may have been exposed to Zika virus should be even more careful than previously recommended about exposing each other and unborn children to the virus, the CDC said Friday.

Men with potential exposure -- because of travel to or residence in an active outbreak area -- should not engage in unprotected sex for at least 8 weeks after the exposure ends. Consequently, for couples residing in outbreak areas, couples should either use condoms or abstain completely from sex, the agency recommended.

Advice to use condoms or abstain from sex also applies to currently pregnant women with potential Zika exposure.

The CDC also recommended that healthcare providers caring for women who might become pregnant and may face Zika exposure counsel them on tactics for avoiding sexual exposures. They include:

• For women living in areas not affected by outbreaks and without symptoms but who might have been exposed, they should wait at least 8 weeks after the potential exposure to attempt conception;
• Women's personal exposure can include having visited an outbreak area or having unprotected sex with a potentially exposed man within the past 6 months; and
• Women with a diagnosis of Zika infection should wait 8 weeks after symptom onset to attempt conception.

The CDC acknowledged that understanding of Zika virus is still evolving. These time periods are based on the best current information, the agency said, but could still change as more is learned.

Another concern raised by the CDC Friday was access to contraception in Puerto Rico, which is bracing for a surge in cases as mosquito season advances. The CDC estimated that 138,000 women of reproductive age in the island territory do not wish to become pregnant and are not using a contraceptive known to be effective.

"CDC and other federal and local partners are seeking to expand access to contraception for these persons," the agency said.

Among the estimated 1-year needs: 68,000 IUDs, 77,000 long-acting hormonal products, 36,000 contraceptive patches, 108,000 vaginal rings, and 168,000 oral contraceptives.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

CDC Revises Sex Advice on Zika