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Zika virus: Doctors advise pregnant women on travel

"My advice is if you're pregnant or potentially pregnant, stay away from the these areas that the CDC has identified," said Dr. Thomas Rubeo, a Bronxville obstetrician.

Jane Lerner, and Michael D'Onofrio
The Journal News

The woman who called Dr. Thomas Rubeo's Bronxville office Saturday morning had a dilemma: her long-planned vacation to the Dominican Republic was fast approaching — but she's pregnant and the popular Caribbean destination is on the list of nations where the mosquito-borne Zika virus has been found.

What should she do, she asked her obstetrician?

"My advice is if you're pregnant or potentially pregnant, stay away from the areas that the CDC has identified," said Rubeo.

Dr. Thomas Rubeo

Some airlines are allowing pregnant women and others worried about the Zika virus to cancel their plans without penalty. But the woman who called Rubeo's office said the resort she had booked was not eager to return her deposit.

Rubeo, a physician with Bronxville Women’s Care, an affiliate of Children’s and Women’s Physicians of Westchester, told his patient that he would document his advice not to take the trip — a request he expects to get more often as February break season approaches.

The explosive spread of the virus that has been linked to a surge in babies born with microcephaly — a smaller than normal head which is usually accompanied by severe brain damage. Researchers are still trying to figure out the connection but the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is recommending that pregnant women postpone travel to those regions.

VIDEO: WHO holds crisis meeting on Zika

Zika has spread to more than 20 nations and territories in the Western Hemisphere. Among the countries where the virus has been found are: Brazil, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico and Puerto Rico.

On Monday, the World Health Organization declared a public health emergency in connection with the outbreak, paving the way for a coordinated global response.

New York's state health department, meanwhile, announced it had set up a Zika virus information line which will be staffed weekdays from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. at 1-888-364-4723. State officials also said they would be offering free lab testing for individuals with symptoms who have traveled to areas where the Zika virus infection is ongoing. As of Monday afternoon, the state had documented nine cases - all of them people who had traveled to areas affected by the outbreak.

Countries and territories, in blue, with documented transmission of Zika virus reported to the Pan American Health Organization, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Dr. Lisa Roth-Brown, an obstetrician at Westchester Health in Mount Kisco, said women have started asking about Zika.

She is advising pregnant patients to play it safe.

“Everyone wants to do what’s safest for their unborn child, so why take the chance on taking a vacation?” Roth-Brown said. “Our patient population pretty much isn’t taking the risk."

Dr. Gary Wormser, chief of infectious diseases at the Westchester Medical Center, said the decision by the CDC to advise pregnant women or those anticipating being pregnant not to travel to Zika-affected countries was nearly unprecedented.

“Why not be prudent and have pregnant women not travel to those areas if there’s a choice?" Wormser said.

Nonetheless, Wormser said he would recommend following the CDC's recommendation at this point, adding that, "If you’re not pregnant, it’s not considered a very dangerous virus."

“It’s considered, for the vast majority of those who get it, a very mild virus," Wormser said.

Local travel agents report no big rush to cancel trips.

Mari Hawkins, owner of Gemini Travel in Mount Kisco, said she has booked a number of honeymoons to those infected areas.

“They may be talking about it, but we certainly don’t see any rush to cancel plans at this point in time,” Hawkins said.

Lisa Marmon, of Flying Giraffe Travel in Armonk, said she has booked many clients to travel in the coming months to the Caribbean — one of the regions where the virus has been reported.

“I don’t think people really care,” Marmon said, noting there are often health risks to travelers visiting certain places.

VIDEO: 5 things you need to know about Zika

Lower Hudson Valley residents who have family in countries affected by the Zika virus are watching the situation with concern.

White Plains resident Luciana Nobre is a native of Rio de Janeiro, the Brazilian city where Zika has been spreading.

Her sister, a nurse in Rio de Janeiro, contracted the virus and was ill for weeks, Nobre said.

“She was so sick — a fever, joint pain, pain all over her body,” Nobre said. “She could hardly walk for two weeks.”

Her sister’s daughter was also infected but not as seriously ill, she said.

Neither  woman was pregnant.

Roberta Santos of Cortlandt Manor, also a Brazilian, is glad she did not schedule a trip this month to be in her native country for Carnival, the popular annual festival celebrated before Lent. It begins on Friday.

"A lot of people aren't going this year," she said. "Everyone is very worried about the Zika virus."

Jamie Mussolini, who has managed Beachfront Travel in Mamaroneck for the past nine years, said her younger clients are “definitely asking for advice” about the Zika virus. Many, she added, are seeking out travelers insurance in case they decide to cancel last minute.

While “people are concerned,” she said, none of her clients has canceled a trip.

Dr. Deborah Nunziato-Ghobashy, who is a client of Mussolini's, said she was in the process of planning a trip to Puerto Rico with her 6-month-old child, but was concerned.

"I am hesitant to go there with a small child," Nunziato-Ghobashy said in an email. "Until we know more about who is affected, how to prevent it and the course of the disease, I don't think it's safe."

USA TODAY contributed to this story.

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