Zika virus infection confirmed in Slovenia
The infection poses no threat to public health in Slovenia, the Public Health Institute added.
The Public Health Institute has been closely monitoring the developments in the world related to the Zika virus and other transmittable diseases and there have been no major changes in the last month, Maja Sočan of the institute said.
A total of 35 people have been tested for Zika in Slovenia and in one case the test came out positive, Sočan said.
Sterle of the UKC's clinic for infectious disease said the infected person had previously been in Latin America.
But he was critical of media reporting of the identity of the patient, saying this information was not relevant for public health.
Tabloid Slovenske novice reported today that the infected person was a member of the Slovenian volleyball team who got infected in Brazil, but this was later rejected by the Volleyball Association as well as by Health Minister Milojka Kolar Celarc.
Director general of the Health Ministry's public health directorate Mojca Gobec said the virus, which was transmitted by mosquitos and through sexual intercourse, posed a threat to pregnant women in particular.
The Public Health Institute therefore issued last week recommendations for visitors of the upcoming Olympic Games in Brazil. Pregnant women and those planning to have a baby are advised against travelling to Brazil.
The Zika virus is the most widespread in Central and Southern America, while in Europe only imported cases have been recorded, meaning that individuals who got infected in the endemic areas brought the virus to Europe.
According to the European centre for monitoring the disease, the number of imported cases of Zika infection into EU or EFTA member states has topped 700.
Zika, which has so far hit mainly Latin America, still puzzles scientists. It has been linked to a rise in brain defects in babies and the virus has been seen in some 60 countries around the world.
In a recent report by the European branch of the World Health Organisation, Slovenia was listed among European countries with a moderate likelihood of the spread of the Zika virus this summer.