Increased rates of Guillain-Barré syndrome associated with Zika virus outbreak in the Salvador metropolitan area, Brazil.

• Main Authors: Ashley R Styczynski (Author), Juliane M A S Malta (Author), Elisabeth R Krow-Lucal (Author), Jadher Percio (Author), Martha E Nóbrega (Author), Alexander Vargas (Author), Tatiana M Lanzieri (Author), Priscila L Leite (Author), J Erin Staples (Author), Marc X Fischer (Author), Ann M Powers (Author), Gwong-Jen J Chang (Author), P L Burns (Author), Erin M Borland (Author), Jeremy P Ledermann (Author), Eric C Mossel (Author), Lawrence B Schonberger (Author), Ermias B Belay (Author), Jorge L Salinas (Author), Roberto D Badaro (Author), James J Sejvar (Author), Giovanini E Coelho (Author)
• Format: Book
• Published: Public Library of Science (PLoS), 2017-08-01T00:00:00Z.
• Subjects: article
• Online Access: Connect to this object online.

Summary

In mid-2015, Salvador, Brazil, reported an outbreak of Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS), coinciding with the introduction and spread of Zika virus (ZIKV). We found that GBS incidence during April-July 2015 among those ≥12 years of age was 5.6 cases/100,000 population/year and increased markedly with increasing age to 14.7 among those ≥60 years of age. We conducted interviews with 41 case-patients and 85 neighborhood controls and found no differences in demographics or exposures prior to GBS-symptom onset. A higher proportion of case-patients (83%) compared to controls (21%) reported an antecedent illness (OR 18.1, CI 6.9-47.5), most commonly characterized by rash, headache, fever, and myalgias, within a median of 8 days prior to GBS onset. Our investigation confirmed an outbreak of GBS, particularly in older adults, that was strongly associated with Zika-like illness and geo-temporally associated with ZIKV transmission, suggesting that ZIKV may result in severe neurologic complications.

Item Description

1935-2727
1935-2735
10.1371/journal.pntd.0005869