Asymptomatic Prenatal Zika Virus Infection and Congenital Zika Syndrome

Open Forum Infect Dis. 2018 Apr 7;5(4):ofy073. doi: 10.1093/ofid/ofy073. eCollection 2018 Apr.

Abstract

To investigate to what extent asymptomatic vs symptomatic prenatal Zika virus infections contribute to birth defects, we identified 3 prospective and 8 retrospective studies. The ratio varied greatly in the retrospective studies, most likely due to recruitment and recall bias. The prospective studies revealed a ratio of 1:1 for asymptomatic vs symptomatic maternal Zika infections resulting in adverse fetal outcomes.

Keywords: Zika; asymptomatic prenatal infection; congenital Zika syndrome; maternal infection; microcephaly.