Puerto Rico's health officials have announced on Thursday that the first case of the Zika virus infection on a pregnant woman has just been confirmed. After being confirmed to be infected with the virus, the woman has become the 19th person in the Latin American country to be infected thus far, according to FOX News Latino.

Puerto Rican Health Secretary Ana Rius has described the woman's condition, though she did not announce any further details about the patient, citing privacy concerns on the patient's part.  

"The woman is currently in the first trimester and has been informed about the possible risk of the virus for her pregnancy. She's been evaluated by her doctor and has asked that her privacy be respected," Ruis said.

Ruis, however, stated that the pregnant woman was aged between 25 to 35, and that she was one of three Zika virus cases that were confirmed by the health department this week. The Health Secretary has warned that there might be more that are infected in the country, since the symptoms of the virus usually go unnoticed at first.

Statistically, it seems like Puerto Rican women are more prone to the notorious infection, with 58 percent of the confirmed Zika virus infections being found in female patients.

The Zika virus has become a worldwide problem, with the mosquito-borne infection allegedly affecting thousands of people all over the world. First Post stated that a Zika infection starts with a simple mosquito bite, which usually causes victims of the virus to develop a fever and a rash. Perhaps the most notorious aspect of the Zika virus, however, is its connection to microcephaly, a condition wherein babies are born with an underdeveloped brain.

In Brazil alone, there are currently 404 cases of microcephaly that were reported since October, with most of the cases being linked to a Zika infection. During the previous year, Brazil only had 147 cases of the birth defect, leading medical experts to assume that the virus is somehow related to the condition.

Apart from microcephaly, the Zika virus is also suspected to be linked to Guillain-Barre syndrome, a potentially paralyzing nerve disorder that was also observed in some patients affected by the virus.

The rapid spread of the virus has caused health officials in countries all over the world to remain extra vigilant in preventing the virus from further spreading. So far, it has spread to about 26 countries in South and Central America.

Health authorities warn that in its current pace, the Zika virus is well on its way to infect about four million people on the continent, before spreading worldwide.