Situation Report

Dallas County Health and Human Services confirms its first case of Zika virus transmitted through sexual activity

CLICK HERE - Dallas County Health and Human Services - DCHHS Reports First Zika Virus Case in Dallas County Acquired Through Sexual Transmission (2 page .PDF file)

cnn.com - by Sandee LaMotte - February 2, 2016

The first case of locally acquired Zika in the continental United States has occurred through sexual transmission in Texas, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Tuesday.

The case, announced by Dallas County health officials, involved a patient who had sex with someone who had recently returned from Venezuela infected with the mosquito-borne virus.

In a statement to CNN, the CDC said it confirmed the test results showing Zika present in the blood of a "nontraveler in the continental United States." They stressed that there was no risk to a developing fetus in this instance.

Based on that, the CDC says it will soon provide guidance on sexual transmission, with a "focus on the male sexual partners of women who are or who may be pregnant."

Dengue fever, chikungunya virus and Zika virus are spread by the bite of infected Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus mosquitoes. PHOTO: UNIVERSAL HISTORY ARCHIVE/UIG/GETTY IMAGES

wsj.com - by BETSY MCKAY and REED JOHNSON - January 12, 2016

A Houston-area woman who traveled in November to El Salvador has been diagnosed with the Zika virus, public health officials said, raising concern that the mosquito-borne illness linked to a health crisis in Brazil could spread through the Americas. . . .

. . . The Texas case shows how the Zika virus is spreading after sparking an epidemic in Brazil that has led to an estimated 500,000 to 1.5 million cases, public health officials say.

Health officials in Brazil believe the virus is behind thousands of cases of microcephaly in that country—a condition in which infants are born with undersized brains and skulls—though it hasn’t before been linked to that rare condition. . . .

. . . U.S. officials say they are preparing for a possible influx of Zika this spring and summer, when populations of the mosquitoes that transmit it—Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus—flourish. . . .

. . . The department is also urging people to protect themselves from mosquitoes.

odi.org - Aditya Bahadur, Emma Lovell, Emily Wilkinson, Thomas Tanner - August 2015

CLICK HERE - Resilience in the SDGs - Developing an indicator for Target 1.5 that is fit for purpose (7 page .PDF file)

We outline a comprehensive approach for developing a cross-sectoral, multi-dimensional and dynamic understanding of resilience. This underpins the core message of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that development is multi-faceted and the achievement of many of the individual development goals is dependent on the accomplishment of other goals. It also acknowledges that shocks and stresses can reverse years of development gains and efforts to eradicate poverty by 2030. Crucially, this approach to understanding resilience draws on data that countries will collect for the SDGs anyway and entails only a small additional burden in this regard.

(CLICK HERE FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION)

The Brazos River in Knox County during the summer of 2011.  Photo by Earl Nottingham/Texas Parks & Wildlife

CLICK HERE - Come Heat and High Water: Climate Risk in the Southeastern U.S. - Executive Summary

CLICK HERE - Come Heat and High Water: Climate Risk in the Southeastern U.S. (114 page .PDF report)

texastribune.org - by Kiah Collier - July 28, 2015

Texas probably will see a sharp increase in heat-related deaths and coastal storm-related losses in the coming decades if nothing is done to mitigate a changing climate, according to a new study commissioned by a bipartisan group of prominent policymakers and company executives aiming to spawn concern – and action – in the business community over the much-debated warming trend.