William and Mary Student Contracts Zika Virus

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The College of William & Mary announced Sunday that one of its students contracted the Zika virus after traveling in Central America.

The student does not pose a health risk to anyone at the university’s campus in Williamsburg, a school spokeswoman said. “It is our understanding that, thankfully, the student is expected to recover fully and is not currently experiencing symptoms,” she said.

William & Mary did not release the student’s name, age, or his or her hometown. The student had been traveling during the school’s winter break.

University officials have consulted with the campus health team and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) about the situation, the spokeswoman said. According to the CDC, the Zika virus is spread to people through the bite of an infected mosquito.

The virus is prevalent in Central and South America, according to media reports. It can cause birth defects, and pregnant women are being warned to avoid those regions. There is no vaccine or specific medicine to treat the Zika virus disease or to prevent infection, according to the CDC - for more information, click here.

However, only one in five people infected with the Zika virus becomes ill, the CDC says. The most common symptoms of the disease are fever, rash, joint pain or conjunctivitis (red eyes). Symptoms typically begin two to seven days after being bitten by an infected mosquito.