Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Report From Brazil: Baby With Zika Stayed Infected For Two Months After Birth
NBC News: More Bad Zika News: Affected Newborn Stayed Infected For Two Months
A Brazilian baby with brain damage caused by Zika virus stayed infected for more than two months after he was born, doctors reported Wednesday. That suggests that newborns may continue to be at risk from the virus at a time when their brains are still rapidly growing and developing. It's another unpleasant surprise about Zika, the once-uninteresting virus that keeps throwing curveballs at researchers. (Fox, 8/24)
Stat: Can Zika Virus Damage An Infected Infant’s Brain After Birth?
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 Zika virus 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. (Branswell, 8/24)
Also in the news -
The Baltimore Sun: Hopkins To Open Multidisciplinary Center Focused On Zika
Johns Hopkins Medicine plans to open what officials said will be the world's first multidisciplinary Zika center, allowing infected patients to get care and researchers to investigate the virus in one place. The rapid spread of the Zika virus has alarmed public health officials and doctors because the mosquito-borne virus causes microcephaly, which stunts the brains and skulls of fetuses in infected pregnant women, and potentially causes other birth defects. Infection also has been connected to stillbirths and miscarriages. (Cohn, 8/24)
