BRIDGETOWN, Barbados (CMC) – Barbados health authorities Monday confirmed that the mosquito-borne Zika virus had been detected in three pregnant women, bringing the number of people affected by the disease to seven.

The Minister of Health in a statement said that the confirmation of the virus had come from the Trinidad-based Caribbean Regional Public Health Agency (CARPHA) as it appealed to people here to ensure that they did not provide an environment for the Aedes aegypti mosquito to survive.

The ministry said that the three women have been notified of the results and have been counselled. “Specialised obstetrics care will also be provided to monitor the progress of their pregnancies,” the statement noted, advising the public that pregnant women were at risk of getting the Zika virus at any trimester in their pregnancy.

However, it explained that the overall link between the Zika virus, babies with small heads and neurological abnormalities, was still under investigation, and therefore, the relationship between the virus and microcephaly had not been established.

“The situation is still evolving and information is being updated regularly. The Ministry of Health will continue to roll out its response based on the local, regional and international experience,” the statement said.

It said as a proactive response, health officials have developed and disseminated guidelines to guide general practitioners, obstetricians and other health care providers in the clinical management of women who have the Zika virus during pregnancy.

According to the statement, the guidelines were developed with the full cooperation and input from the Obstetrics and Paediatrics Departments at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital.