A mosquito bite appears as an itchy round, red, or pink skin bump. It's usually harmless but can sometimes cause a serious illness, such as the Zika virus (particularly harmful in pregnant women), the West Nile virus, or malaria. For most people, Zika causes a brief, flu-like illness. But pregnant women with Zika infection have had an alarming increase inmicrocephaly birth defects in their newborns — a debilitatingly small head and brain size. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) posted a 2016 travel alert advising pregnant women to delay travel to 50 areas where Zika is active including Latin America and the Caribbean.

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