Zika causes more abortions than doctors thought, research shows

Mapping Zika's epidemic can show how the spread of new epidemics

The Zika Zika epidemic can show how the spread of new epidemics

The Zika vaccine can already be tested in Brazil

The study, published in the journal Nature Medicine Monday, revealed that 26% of monkeys infected with zika during the first stages of pregnancy suffer from miscarriage or have stillborn pups, although animals show few signs of infection [19659006] – These rates of fetal loss and stillbirth in gravid monkeys infected with zika were about four times more Up than what is normally observed in pregnant monkeys. Koen Van Rompay, one of the authors of the study and a scientist from the National Primate Research Center. – Many fetal and placental tissues showed signs of zika virus replication and also had pathological lesions, further reinforcing the role of zika in this detrimental outcome.

LIMITATIONS

Previous research on zika has been measured number of spontaneous abortions and stillbirths in women with signs or symptoms of the virus. A recent study of pregnant women infected with Zika virus showed that 5% of them did not lead to term pregnancy or neonates.

– Studies in humans depend on symptomatic infections – said Dawn Dudley, the study's authoring director and a scientist in the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at the University of Michigan. University of Wisconsin-Madison, United States. – Women enroll in studies because they have zika symptoms, but we know that up to half of people with zika have no symptoms. Therefore, pregnancy studies probably do not take into account half of people with zika.

MICROFEFALIA AND OTHER PROBLEMS

The Zika virus is widely known to cause the birth of children with a set of brain abnormalities that became known as Conbad Syndrome. Zika. This syndrome includes microcephaly – malformation in which the perimeter of the baby's head is smaller than normal – but also other health problems, such as epilepsy and vision difficulties.

The disease caused by this virus in adults is much lighter. It may include fever, rash, headache, joint and muscle pain, and red eyes. "Our data on monkeys indicate that more research is needed to enable researchers to develop intervention strategies to protect pregnant women and their fetuses against the Zika virus," said Lark Coffey, an arbovirologist and also author of the study

The timing of infection is considered by scientists as an important predictor of fetal loss. Exposure to the virus during the first trimester of monkey pregnancy has been shown to be most likely to lead to fetal death – a finding that accompanies human narratives.