ST GEORGE’S, Grenada (CMC) – Grenada has recorded its first case of the mosquito-borne Zike virus, becoming the second Caribbean country to do so within a 48-hour period.

Earlier this week, health authorities in Antigua confirmed the island’s first case.

Health Minister Nicolas Steele said confirmation of the first case came last Friday from the Trinidad-based Caribbean Public Health Agency (CAPHA).

He said that though the person recently travelled it’s not believed that transmission was done while overseas.

“Based on the number of days the person has returned it’s the view of the health officials that the transmission did not happen outside but on island,” he said.

Steele said that the unidentified woman was from the St Andrew area.

The Zika virus is spread to people primarily through the bite of an infected Aedes Aegypti mosquito. The most common symptoms of Zika are fever, rash, joint pain, and conjunctivitis (red eyes).

However, Zika virus infection during pregnancy can cause a serious birth defect called microcephaly, as well as other severe fetal brain defects. Once a person has been infected, he or she is likely to be protected from future infections.

A number of Caribbean countries have reported cases of the virus in recent months.