US Red Cross asks blood donors to wait

  • 03/02/2016
Cultivated eggs of the Aedes aegypti mosquitoes that transmits the Zika virus (Reuters)
Cultivated eggs of the Aedes aegypti mosquitoes that transmits the Zika virus (Reuters)

The American Red Cross has appealed to prospective blood donors who have travelled to Zika virus outbreak areas to wait at least 28 days before donating their blood.

The "self-deferral" for blood donors should apply to those who have visited Mexico, the Caribbean, or Central or South America during the past four weeks, the Red Cross said in a statement.

The Zika outbreak, a mosquito-born illness linked to a dangerous birth defect called microcephaly, now affects more than 30 countries and territories.

Reuters