Prolonged Shedding of Zika Virus Associated with Congenital Infection (NEJM, August 24, 2016)

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Prolonged Shedding of Zika Virus Associated with Congenital Infection

August 24, 2016DOI: 10.1056/NEJMc1607583
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The presence of Zika virus (ZIKV) infection has been associated with microcephaly in multiple studies,1-3 although little is known about ZIKV shedding in congenitally infected infants. We report a case of a newborn who had continued viremia with ZIKV for at least 67 days after birth.
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When the infant was examined on day 54, he had no obvious illness or evidence of any immunocompromising condition. However, by 6 months of age, he showed neuropsychomotor developmental delay, with global hypertonia and spastic hemiplegia, with the right dominant side more severely affected.
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http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMc1607583?query=featured_home

[Gert van der Hoek]

Can Zika virus damage an infected infant’s brain after birth?

By HELEN BRANSWELL @HelenBranswell

AUGUST 24, 2016


A new report from Brazil raises questions about whether the Zika virus can continue to damage an infected infant’s brain after birth.

An infant in Sao Paulo whose mother was infected late in her second trimester was born without any visible birth defects. But testing showed the baby had the Zikavirus in his blood; the virus remained in his system for at least a couple of months.

At six months, it became apparent that the child had suffered Zika-related brain damage. He had severe muscle contractions — a common sign of brain damage — on one side of his body.

A number of doctors from Sao Paulo reported the case in a letter published by the New England Journal of Medicine on Wednesday.

Did the brain damage occur while he was in his mother’s womb? Or did the virus continue to attack the baby’s developing brain after birth? Those are questions for which there aren’t answers at the moment, experts said.

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