As of 11 May 2016, 58 countries and territories report continuing
mosquito-borne Zika transmission. Nine countries have reported evidence of
person-to-person transmission of the virus.
The President of the World Federation of Neurology (WFN) Prof Raad Shakir
(London), said that following the first confirmed Zika-related case of
microcephaly on U.S. territory, in Puerto Rico, and the ever-growing number of
sexually-transmitted Zika infections in Europe, "it is increasingly
obvious that the Zika epidemic has long assumed global proportions."
As the opening of the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro draws closer, and with WHO
warnings about the risk of Zika taking hold in Europe, more and more attention
would be focussed on the relentless spread of the epidemic, said Prof Shakir.
Concerned about the increasing number of neurological complications related to
the Zika virus, the WFN has recently established a working group to contribute
expertise in support of the coordinated global response to the Zika crisis.
large percentage of people suffering from Zika virus infections are
asymptomatic or show only mild symptoms. But potential neurological
complications can be dramatic. "There is a lack of awareness that perhaps
more risks are involved in Zika infections than the devastating foetal
malformations when Zika is acquired during pregnancy such as the now-familiar
microcephaly issue.
With major neurological conditions such as Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS),
myelitis, or meningoencephalitis involved in Zika infections, the risks are
much broader than originally thought," says Prof John England (Louisiana
State University, New Orleans) who chairs the WFN Zika Work Group.
In a follow-up to a recent meeting on the public health implications of Zika in
Tegucigalpa, Honduras, Prof John England and Prof Marco Medina, of the
Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Honduras, also a member of the WFN Zika Work
Group, agreed on the need for formal guidelines outlining diagnostic criteria
for neurological complications of the Zika virus.
"We will be working over the next weeks to develop a broad consensus among
experts on this," said Prof England.
With no vaccination in prospect for the time being and lack of evidence about
the risk factors influencing the development of neurological symptoms after
Zika infection, the focus is now on surveillance, enhanced mosquito control,
and prevention, says Prof England.
"In particular at a time when thousands of athletes and fans will be
travelling to Rio in July, we need to create awareness about the risks
involved, and what needs to be done for personal protection."
This is a short description in the author block about the author. You edit it by entering text in the "Biographical Info" field in the user admin panel.
0 comments:
Post a Comment
Please insert your comments here