Clinical Manifestations in Pregnant Women and Congenital Abnormalities in Fetus and Newborns during a Zika Transmission Period in South Mexico

Abstract

Dengue, Chikungunya and Zika are arboviruses transmitted by Ae. aegypti with significant public health impact. In the first trimester of 2015, autochthonous Zika transmission was reported in Mexico. The state of Yucatan is an endemic region where pregnant women with acute infection and related congenital abnormalities in fetus and newborns were observed. We describe results from a cohort of pregnant women and their babies followed up in Yucatan during the first Zika transmission outbreak (2016–2018). Clinical manifestations of acute ZIKV infection, persistence of viral RNA in pregnant women, as well as congenital abnormalities were observed. In addition, we describe the phenotype of newborns from confirmed or suspected ZIKV prenatal infection.