(Photo by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

A digitally-colorized transmission electron micrograph of Zika virus.

The last confirmed case of Zika in Arizona was on July 29, bringing the statewide total to 13. All of them have been travel related. 

Now, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is advising people to avoid a neighborhood north of Miami, Florida, where multiple localized cases have occurred. 

The Zika virus is spread by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, which is found in Arizona. 

Dr. Tom Friedan, director of the CDC, said the Zika virus is spread in a very different way compared to other mosquito born diseases. 

“There isn’t an animal reservoir. So, unlike West Nile, which persists in the bird population and can affect an entire state. With Zika it is quite focal and generally requires that mosquitos get re-infected or infected by people who are infected,” he said.  

Friedan said the Aedes aegypti mosquito only travels about a mile in its lifetime, meaning most cases of Zika are localized. It’s only when those infected go into crowded populations that the disease is more easily spread.