Contamination with the Zika virus during pregnancy is a serious condition because the virus passes to the baby causing microcephaly, a disorder that compromises the baby's brain development.
The diagnosis of Zika is usually made through the symptoms presented, however, when the pregnant woman is suspected of having the disease, the doctor can request specific tests that can confirm the disease, mainly from the 16th week of gestation.
The tests that are capable of confirming the disease are not available in the public network, nor do they have the coverage of the health plans, but can be performed in private laboratories, with a cost of approximately one thousand reais, and the result takes on average one month. This test can only be done when symptoms are present.
How the pregnant woman knows she is with Zika
For the vast majority of the population, it is enough that the woman has symptoms of zika, such as red patches on the skin, itching throughout the body and fever for the disease to be suspected. Anyone who has financial conditions can ask the doctor to perform the examinations and private clinics.
Although the baby's brain impairment is greater when the mother is with Zika in the first trimester of pregnancy, the baby may be affected at any stage of pregnancy. Therefore all pregnant women should be accompanied by doctors during prenatal care and should protect themselves from the mosquito to avoid getting Zika, and also should use a condom when the partner presents symptoms of Zika.
Zika causes brain damage at any stage of pregnancy
The zika virus can cause harm to the baby at any stage of pregnancy, not just early in gestation. In general, the damage is lower when the woman is infected late in pregnancy, but there is still a risk of fetal death, even when the woman is healthy and without complications during pregnancy.
In addition to abortion and death of the baby still in the womb, the virus can also cause changes in the nervous system, microcephaly, decreased growth and fetal distress.
What can happen to the baby
When the woman takes Zika during pregnancy, the virus crosses the placental barrier, circulates in the baby's blood and can cause the baby's brain to not grow to a size smaller than 33 cm, a characteristic of microcephaly.
The only ways to know if the baby has microcephaly is through ultrasound where a lower brain perimeter can be observed and by measuring the size of the head as soon as the baby is born.
Despite this, no examination can prove that the Zika virus was present in the baby's bloodstream at any time during gestation. But it is believed that Zika is the cause of microcephaly because almost all mothers of babies diagnosed with this disease showed symptoms of Zika in pregnancy.
Babies who have microcephalus whose mothers reportedly did not present Zika symptoms in pregnancy should be investigated because there are other causes of microcephaly. However, it should be taken into consideration that the virus may have been present in these women, and so far there are no tests that can prove that the woman really had no contact with the zika virus.
Easily understand what microcephaly is and how to care for a baby with this problem by watching the following video:
Exams that identify the Zika virus
The 4 exams that are able to identify who the person is with Zika are:
1. PCR Molecular Testing
It is the test that can detect the presence of small particles of the virus during the disease, which is when there is a large amount of virus in the bloodstream.
This is the most commonly used test, but only a few pregnant women suspected of Zika or who already have a diagnosis of microcephaly in the baby can be chosen by the health ministry to do this test.
The PCR can identify particles of the virus in the blood, placenta and amniotic fluid. The result is more easily obtained when it is performed while the person presents the symptoms of the disease, which varies between 3 and 10 days. After this period, the immune system fights the virus and the fewer viruses are present in these tissues, the harder it is to get to the diagnosis.
When the result is negative, which means that no Zika virus particles were found in the blood, placenta or aminiotic fluid, but the baby has microcephaly, other causes for this disease should be investigated. Know the causes of microcephaly.
However, it is difficult to know if the woman has had Zika for so long that the immune system has already managed to remove all traces of the virus from the body. This could only be elucidated by performing another test that evaluates the antibodies formed against the Zika virus, which has not yet existed yet, although researchers around the world are working on this.
2. Quick test for Zika
It consists of placing only 1 drop of blood in a kit suitable for this type of test, called a genosensor that is able to identify traces of DNA from the Zika virus. It is estimated that it will be available to the population in 3 years.
3. Differential NAT KIT for Dengue, Zika and Chikungunya
This KIT contains packages with the reagent of these three diseases and gives the result in about 2 hours. This test should be available until February 2016, being useful to diagnose in a single examination what disease the person has.
4. Serological examination of Zika virus
This test does not yet exist but is most expected because it will be able to identify the antibodies formed to fight the disease through Igg markers, which indicate that the person has had contact with the Zika virus ever in life, and also IgM, which indicates that people are battling the virus right now.
This test will be the cheapest and most efficient for the diagnosis of Zika but is still in testing stages. It is estimated that by December 2016 this test is already available to be used.
With this examination it will be possible to clarify the cases of microcephaly that apparently are not related to Zika, nor with any other possible cause of the disease.
Forms of transmission of Zika
Zika transmission occurs through the bite of the Aedes Aegypti mosquito and mother to child during pregnancy. Apparently, the virus can also be transmitted through sexual contact because there are 3 confirmed cases of this form of transmission in the United States. Another hypothesis is that the virus passes through the saliva.
How to protect yourself from Zika in pregnancy
To protect and avoid Zika the pregnant woman should wear long clothing that covers most of the skin and use repellent every day to keep the mosquitoes away. See the most suitable repellents.
Other strategies that may be helpful are planting citronella or ascending aromatic citronella candles nearby because they keep mosquitoes away. Investing in the consumption of foods rich in vitamin B1 also helps keep mosquitoes away because this alters the smell of the skin, making the mosquitoes are not attracted by its smell.
In addition, after confirmation that Zika is sexually transmitted, intimate contact with an infected partner should be done with a condom . For how long, it is still not safe to say because it is unknown for how long the virus can remain in the semen, the safest is that if your partner has Zika while you are pregnant, use a condom until the baby is born.
