Related Subjects:
|Fever in a traveller
|Malaria Falciparum
|Malaria Non-Falciparum
|Viral Haemorrhagic Fevers (VHF)
|Lassa fever
|Dengue
|Marburg virus disease
|AIDS HIV
|Yellow fever
|Ebola Virus
|Leptospirosis
| Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever
|African Trypanosomiasis (Sleeping sickness)
|American Trypanosomiasis (Chagas Disease)
|Incubation Periods
|Notifiable Diseases UK
🦟 About
- Spread by bites of infected Aedes mosquitoes (A. aegypti, A. albopictus).
- First discovered in 1947 in the Zika Forest, Uganda.
🧬 Aetiology
- Mosquitoes bite both day and night.
- Vertical transmission: can cross placenta → infect fetus.
- Infection during pregnancy may cause severe congenital anomalies.
🤒 Clinical Features
- Often asymptomatic (~80%).
- Mild febrile illness: fever, rash, conjunctivitis (red eyes), headache, arthralgia, myalgia.
- Usually lasts days–weeks.
⚠️ Complications
- Congenital Zika Syndrome: microcephaly, severe brain defects, growth restriction.
- Pregnancy outcomes: miscarriage, stillbirth.
- Neurological: Guillain–Barré syndrome in adults.
🧪 Investigations
- Serology (blood/urine) for Zika IgM antibodies.
- RT-PCR if within 2 weeks of symptom onset (more specific).
🔍 Differentials
- Dengue fever.
- Chikungunya virus infection.
🛡️ Prevention
- No vaccine or specific antiviral available.
- Wear long sleeves & trousers; use insect repellent (DEET safe in pregnancy).
- Stay in screened/air-conditioned rooms; use bed nets if unscreened or outdoors.
- Protect infants with mosquito netting.
- ⚠️ Sexual transmission possible → use condoms or abstain during/after travel to endemic areas.
💊 Management
- Supportive: rest, oral fluids, paracetamol for fever/pain.
- Avoid NSAIDs until dengue ruled out (risk of bleeding).
- Pregnant women: close monitoring with serial ultrasound scans for fetal growth and brain development.
📚 References
