World Health Leaders Call For Emergency Talks On Zika Virus

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — World health leaders moved quickly Thursday to deal with the spread of the Zika virus, which has been confirmed in at least one Los Angeles County case.

U.S. researchers have been calling for an emergency session about the mosquito-transmitted Zika virus, saying we need to pay attention to the lessons learned from Ebola and treat this as a serious health crisis.

The virus has spread to 24 countries, including some in the Americas and Caribbean. The Los Angeles County case was an adolescent girl who traveled last November to El Salvador, where she probably contracted the illness. The girl has since recovered.

Officials nationwide have warned travelers to take precautions from mosquitos when visiting other countries. Zika's symptoms are generally mild, but is suspected in a surge of birth defects in Brazil, where infections were first identified last year.

No transmission of Zika virus infection has occurred in California, but a second U.S. case was confirmed Wednesday in a Minnesota woman who recently returned from Honduras.

There is no known treatment or cure for Zika, and researchers are working on a vaccine, which could take years.