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Public Health and Viruses
Published in Patricia G. Melloy, Viruses and Society, 2023
The world has faced other challenges from viral pathogens less than five years before COVID-19, most notably the Zika virus in 2016 and the Ebola virus from 2014 to 2016. Before the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Brazil, there was a concern that athletes would contract Zika virus during the games. Zika virus is a flavivirus (like West Nile virus) that is spread through mosquito bites but can be sexually transmitted by infected individuals. However, public health officials published a report indicating that for athletes from almost all the countries, the risk of contracting Zika virus was no greater than if they were traveling to a Zika-infected region (other countries in North and South America) for another reason. The researchers also cited evidence that fewer mosquitoes would be around during the winter months in Brazil (August) as well. However, the scientists did recommend taking precautions against getting mosquito bites and taking preventative measures to avoid sexual transmission even in the weeks after returning from the games. Nevertheless, pregnant women were advised not to attend due to the known risk of brain defects for the fetus (Grills et al. 2016). The recommended public health measures seemed to have worked, and no Zika cases were reported after the Olympics as of September 2016 (Tavernise 2016).
Rocket Science
Published in Norman Begg, The Remarkable Story of Vaccines, 2023
Over the last few years, gene-based science has created platforms that enable new vaccines to be made to order. The success of gene-based COVID-19 vaccines has paved the way for vaccines not just for pandemics, but for other diseases that have hitherto eluded conventional approaches, such as HIV. Gene-based vaccines are in development for Lassa fever (a viral disease that causes internal bleeding, like Ebola, which has caused outbreaks in West Africa since the 1950s) and for Zika virus, the mosquito-borne disease which has recently spread from Africa to many regions, especially South America. Zika virus causes devastating damage to the unborn baby if caught in pregnancy; the baby is born with a small head (microcephaly) and severe mental retardation. Gene-based vaccines are being pursued for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), which causes a serious respiratory illness in young children and the elderly, and for cytomegalovirus (CMV), anther illness which causes damage to the developing fetus in pregnant women; one in 200 pregnancies are affected by CMV. A trial of an RNA vaccine against Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) has started. EBV is the cause of infectious mononucleosis (better known as glandular fever) but has also been linked to multiple sclerosis. Influenza vaccines will likely be improved by using gene-based technology. The world of viral vaccines is being revolutionised as the genomes of these tiny organisms are laid bare.
Zika: An Ancient Virus Incipient into New Spaces
Published in Jagriti Narang, Manika Khanuja, Small Bite, Big Threat, 2020
Bennet Angel, Neelam Yadav, Jagriti Narang, Surender Singh Yadav, Annette Angel, Vinod Joshi
Past medical details, locality, details of traveling to flavivirus-prone areas etc. should be captured. The patients mental state, hydration state, abdominal tenderness, and other parameters should be checked. The blood/serum sample should then be drawn to diagnose routine blood- and dengue-related tests. Plenty of fluids and ORS are recommended, and proper rest is advised. As per the WHO, no treatment is available for ZIKV infection or its associated diseases. Symptoms of ZIKV infection are usually mild. People with symptoms such as fever, rash, or arthralgia should get plenty of rest, drink fluids, and treat pain and fever with common medicines. If symptoms worsen, they should seek medical care and advice. Pregnant women living in areas with Zika transmission or who develop symptoms of ZIKV infection should seek medical attention for laboratory testing and other clinical care (WHO guidelines, 2009).
Anxiety and depression among caregivers of young children with Congenital Zika Syndrome in Brazil
Published in Disability and Rehabilitation, 2021
Natalie A. Williams, Pompéia Villachan-Lyra, Christine Marvin, Emmanuelle Chaves, Cody Hollist, Holly Hatton-Bowers, Leopoldo Nelson F. Barbosa
On 1 February 2016, the World Health Organization declared an international public health emergency in response to the proliferation of the Zika virus. At that time, active transmission of Zika was reported in 28 countries and territories, with the majority of cases occurring in the Americas, including Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela, Mexico, Haiti, and Barbados. No country was more affected by this outbreak than Brazil, where widespread transmission of this disease was first recognized in 2014 [1]. While most people infected by the Zika virus are asymptomatic or experience only mild symptoms, intrauterine infection can have devastating consequences for fetal development. Zika infection during pregnancy is associated with the occurrence of Congenital Zika Syndrome (CZS), a pattern of congenital anomalies that includes microcephaly and other serious brain abnormalities and sensory impairments [2–11]. Evidence suggests that pregnant women infected by the Zika virus in early pregnancy are at greater risk of having an infant with microcephaly [2]. A total of 3332 confirmed cases of CZS have been reported in Brazil from 2015 to 1 February 2019, with 70% of cases occurring in the northeast region of the country [12].
The impact of climate change on mosquito-borne diseases in Africa
Published in Pathogens and Global Health, 2020
Christine Giesen, Jesús Roche, Lidia Redondo-Bravo, Claudia Ruiz-Huerta, Diana Gomez-Barroso, Agustin Benito, Zaida Herrador
Worldwide, chikungunya and zika have also seen a recent expansion. While previously confined to Africa, chikungunya outbreaks are now being reported in India and Indic Ocean islands, as well as Europe and the Americas [79]. It seems that as a consequence of drought, chikungunya has risen on the East African coasts [87,88]. The Atlantic and Indian Ocean coasts, as well as an area spreading from West Africa to South Sudan, have been identified as suitable regions for chikungunya spread under future climate change scenarios [89]. The problem is that most of these studies regret the lack of entomological information [25,90]. For example, Aedes albopictus has only been reported in some parts of West Africa, Madagascar and South Africa [90]. Zika, which is also widely underdiagnosed, has been reported in Asia, the Americas and the Pacific region recently [91]. According to our review, South Sudan is at risk, although differing virulence among lineages has to be taken into account. Furthermore, lacking historical data on the virus’ distribution contributes to unspecific projections [26,90].
General movements and motor outcomes in two infants exposed to Zika virus: brief report
Published in Developmental Neurorehabilitation, 2019
Daniele de Almeida Soares-Marangoni, Natália Matos Tedesco, Andressa Lagoa Nascimento, Priscila Rimoli De Almeida, Caroline Neder dos Santos Pereira
Zika virus (ZIKV) infection is transmitted to humans primarily by the bite of infected Aedes aegypiti mosquitoes.1 This otherwise benign disease was first associated to congenital central nervous system (CNS) malformation in 2015,2 after its earlier outbreak in Brazil1 followed by a sharp increase in the number of newborns with microcephaly.3 In 2016, the World Health Organization declared ZIKV infection constitutes a public health emergency of international concern.4 Since then, the worldwide scientific community has increasingly improved investigation on ZIKV pathogenesis in the developing CNS. Recent findings indicate ZIKV crosses placenta and target neuronal progenitor cells, particularly in the first trimester of gestation.5,6 This has been associated to multiple congenital abnormalities apart from microcephaly, including ventriculomegaly and white matter injury seen in brain imaging and retinal injury detected in eye fundus imaging (ophthalmoscopy). These abnormalities are linked to severe neurodevelopmental impairment.7,8 On the other hand, in infants exposed to ZIKV in the third trimester of gestation, subsequent neurodevelopment has been found to be normal despite the presence of mild brain lesion in the neonatal period.9