Health officials announce first Zika-related death in Puerto Rico.

A patient with Zika virus infection in Puerto Rico has died of complications related to severe thrombocytopenia, according to a recent Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR). It is the first Zika virus-associated death to be reported in the country. “Although Zika virus-associated deaths are rare, the first identified death in Puerto Rico highlights the possibility of severe cases, as well as the need for continued outreach to raise health care providers’ awareness of complications that might lead to severe disease or death,” Emilio Dirlikov, PhD, of the Puerto Rico Department of Health’s Office of Epidemiology and Research and the CDC’s Division of Scientific Education and Professional Development, and colleagues wrote. Zika virus infections continue to rise the researchers reported that weekly case counts of Zika virus infection have gradually increased in the country since late November. As of April 14, health officials from the Puerto Rico Department of Health (PRDH) and CDC Dengue Branch in San Juan, identified 6,157 patients with suspected arbovirus infections. Among them, 11% of patients, including 65 symptomatic pregnant women, were identified as probable or laboratory-confirmed Zika virus cases. The most common symptoms among these patients included rash (74%), myalgia (68%), headache (63%), fever (63%) and arthralgia (63%). Seventeen patients required hospitalization, including five with suspected Guillain-Barré syndrome. culled from healio.com