Prevention Practices among United States Pregnant Women Who Travel to Zika Outbreak Areas
Abbey B Berenson1,2, Jacqueline M Hirth2,1, Fangjian Guo2,1
1Center for Interdisciplinary Research in Women's Health, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, Texas.
We surveyed pregnant women from the United States to assess the prevention practices they used when traveling to countries with ongoing Zika virus (ZIKV) outbreaks. Of the 749 who agreed to participate, 710 completed the survey's travel questions and 59 of those had traveled to a ZIKV outbreak area in the past 12 months. Only 43% of the women who had traveled to ZIKV outbreak areas reported frequently using mosquito repellant with 32% stating they did not use it at all. They also did not frequently use other recommended methods to prevent mosquito bites. With the established risks to babies born to women who contract the ZIKV during pregnancy, it is a great concern that a large number of women who travel to outbreak areas during pregnancy are not protecting themselves against mosquito bites. Pregnant women need to be educated on the importance of taking precautions.
We surveyed pregnant women from the United States to assess the prevention practices they used when traveling to countries with ongoing Zika virus (ZIKV) outbreaks. Of the 749 who agreed to participate, 710 completed the survey's travel questions and 59 of those had traveled to a ZIKV outbreak area in the past 12 months. Only 43% of the women who had traveled to ZIKV outbreak areas reported frequently using mosquito repellant with 32% stating they did not use it at all. They also did not frequently use other recommended methods to prevent mosquito bites. With the established risks to babies born to women who contract the ZIKV during pregnancy, it is a great concern that a large number of women who travel to outbreak areas during pregnancy are not protecting themselves against mosquito bites. Pregnant women need to be educated on the importance of taking precautions.
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