Zika virus outbreak in Brazil

Authors

  • Jorg Heukelbach School of Medicine, Federal University of Ceará, Fortaleza, CE, Brazil
  • Carlos Henrique Alencar School of Medicine, Federal University of Ceará, Fortaleza, CE, Brazil
  • Alyson Ann Kelvin Immune Diagnostics and Research (IDR), Toronto, Ontario, Canada
  • Wanderson Kleber de Oliveira Coordenação-Geral de Vigilância e Resposta às Emergências em Saúde Pública do Ministério da Saúde do Brasil, Brasília, Brazil
  • Luciano Pamplona de Góes Cavalcanti School of Medicine, Federal University of Ceará, Fortaleza, CE, Brazil

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.3855/jidc.8217

Keywords:

Zika virus, Flavivirus, Chikungunya, Dengue virus, Brazil, microcephaly

Abstract

Zika virus (ZIKV) infection is spreading rapidly within the Americas after originating from an outbreak in Brazil. We describe the current ZIKV infection epidemic in Brazil and the neurological symptoms arising. First cases of an acute exanthematic disease were reported in Brazil’s Northeast region at the end of 2014. In March 2015, autochthonous ZIKV was determined to be the causative agent of the exanthematic disease. As cases of neurological syndromes in regions where ZIKV, dengue and/or Chikungunya viruses co-circulate were reported, ZIKV was also identified in the cerebrospinal fluid of patients with acute neurological syndromes and previous exanthematic disease. By the end of September 2015, an increasing number of infants with small head circumference or microcephaly were noted in Brazil’s Northeast which was estimated to be 29 cases between August and October. ZIKV was identified in blood and tissue samples of a newborn and in mothers who had given birth to infants with microcephaly and ophthalmological anomalies. In 2015, there were an estimated 440,000 - 1,300,000 Zika cases in Brazil. There have been 4,783 suspected cases of microcephaly, most of them in the Northeast of Brazil associated with 76 deaths. The Ministry of Health is intensifying control measures against the mosquito Aedes aegypti and implemented intensive surveillance actions. Further studies are needed to confirm the suspected association between ZIKV infection and microcephaly; to identify antiviral, immunotherapy, or prophylactic vaccine; to introduce diagnostic ELISA testing. Clinical and epidemiological studies must be performed to describe viral dynamics and expansion of the outbreak.

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Published

2016-02-28

How to Cite

1.
Heukelbach J, Alencar CH, Kelvin AA, de Oliveira WK, Pamplona de Góes Cavalcanti L (2016) Zika virus outbreak in Brazil. J Infect Dev Ctries 10:116–120. doi: 10.3855/jidc.8217

Issue

Section

Outbreak

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