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A pregnant woman waits to be attended at the Maternal and Children's Hospital in Tegucigalpa on January 21, 2016. The medical school at the National Autonomous University of Honduras (UNAH) recommended that women in the country avoid getting pregnant for the time being due to the presence of the Zika virus. If a pregnant woman is infected by the virus, the baby could be born with microcephaly.ORLANDO SIERRA/AFP / Getty Images

No one thought the most nerve-racking part of pregnancy would be the babymoon. But many parents-to-be are torn after warnings last week about the mosquito-borne Zika virus, which is likely to spread to all countries in the Americas except for Canada and Chile, the World Health Organization said on Monday.

Mike Sadoway plans to fly from Edmonton to St. Lucia next month with his wife, who will be four months pregnant. The surrounding islands have cases of the virus.

"That obviously has us concerned, but we also don't want to waste our vacation dollars in cancellation fees just because a place that doesn't have any cases may have cases down the road," he said.

Zika infections are linked with permanent brain damage in fetuses, so the Canadian and American governments have asked pregnant women to postpone travel to the affected countries. But the numbers seem to show drastically different risks in different places – and many insurance companies won't cover cancelled trips, saying the official warning isn't strong enough.

Researchers say pregnant travellers need to understand how much is unknown about the virus.

"We can't today say the risk is one in a thousand, or one in a hundred thousand, or one in a million," said Dr. Kamran Khan, an infectious disease scientist at St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto. "We just don't have enough information."

He and other experts spoke with The Globe and Mail to answer common questions about the outbreak.

Is a country with very few Zika infections probably safe?

Don't count on it, says Dr. Khan. He and other researchers recently mapped where Zika is likely to spread across the Americas this year.

The warning to avoid travelling to countries with even a single case "may be conservative" for some large countries, like Mexico, Dr. Khan said.

But Zika's spread will take weeks to be reflected in statistics, he said. Four in five infected people have no symptoms. Many Latin American countries don't have strong public-health systems, and even when Zika is spotted, it often takes weeks to test.

Is it probably safe to travel in the second or third trimester of pregnancy?

No one knows. The highest risk is in the first trimester, a time of crucial development for fetus' brains. All the babies with suspected Zika-related brain damage were infected during their first trimester, said Dr. Nikos Vasilakis, a pathologist at the University of Texas who travelled to Brazil last month.

There's very little evidence what happens in later trimesters.

Are certain times of year safer than others?

Yes, but only in countries with cool seasons. That includes parts of Mexico right now. "Avoid the warmest times of the year in any particular area," said Dr. Khan.

Are there other ways to steer clear of the mosquitoes that transmit the virus?

Not reliably. They're found in cities, countryside and beaches. They bite during the day, both indoors and outdoors, said Dr. Khan.

What should people do if they're trying to conceive?

Wait about a month after you come home, as long as you had no symptoms, said Dr. Khan. If you had flu-like symptoms – especially a fever, skin rash or irritated eyes – see your doctor and get tested before trying to get pregnant.

There's mounting evidence that Zika may occasionally be sexually transmitted, said Dr. Vasilakis, so male travellers should pay attention to travel advisories too.

Are travel insurers and airlines refunding trips cancelled because of Zika risk?

Stay tuned. TD Insurance won't, unless the federal government formally warns pregnant women to "avoid all travel" to a given destination, a spokeswoman told The Globe. An Air Canada spokesman said Wednesday the airline now has a "goodwill policy" allowing pregnant customers to change their travel plans, with each case being handled individually by the company's Medical Desk. WestJet wasn't receptive when Mr. Sadoway called, he said.

Manulife said that "given this unique situation," pregnant clients and their travel companions should submit claims for review.

RBC Insurance will cover the cancellations. Blue Cross in Quebec and Ontario didn't respond to requests for comment, but Montreal resident Samantha Kelley said the company seemed to take a "no questions asked" approach when she cancelled her trip to Panama.

Ms. Kelley, seven months pregnant, said it was an "unfortunate" but easy decision.

"My husband and I had just spent five years going through the process of trying to conceive our family, so there was no risk to take," she said. "There's no travel that's worth the risk of putting our baby's health in danger."

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