Georgia woman who got Zika from partner recovers

ATLANTA – State health officials say a woman confirmed as the Georgia's first sexually transmitted case of the Zika virus has recovered.

Georgia's Department of Public Health announced Friday that the she got Zika from her male partner, who traveled to Brazil earlier this year. Officials say the man contracted the disease while traveling.

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The man also recovered. The woman wasn't pregnant and hadn't traveled outside the U.S.

The DPH says a man infected with Zika can pass the virus to his female or male sex partner before, during and after symptoms appear. Exactly how long Zika virus remains in semen is not known, but a recent report indicated Zika remaining in semen for 62 days. Research is ongoing, but at this time there is no evidence that women can transmit Zika virus to their sexual partners.

"If your partner has traveled to an area where Zika virus transmission is ongoing, protecting yourself by abstaining from sex or using condoms during sex is the best way to prevent sexual transmission of the Zika virus," said Brenda Fitzgerald, commissioner of the Georgia Department of Public Health. "Next to abstinence, condoms are the best prevention method against any sexually transmitted infection."

According to the Centers for Disease Control, 11 sexually transmitted cases of Zika have been confirmed in the U.S.

The CDC has confirmed 591 total cases of Zika in the U.S., all associated with travel outside the country. The virus is primarily spread by infected mosquitoes.