Zika could cause babies to go BLIND

February 11, 2016  17:25

Babies born to mothers infected with Zika virus may suffer severe eye problems, in addition to an abnormally small head, scientists revealed.

A new study found babies born with microcephaly – in which their heads are small and their brains aren’t fully formed – may also have eye abnormalities.

Doctors examined 29 infants with suspected Zika-related microcephaly in Salvador, Brazil.

They found abnormalities in the retina or optic nerve of 10 of the infants – seven of whom had defects in both eyes.

This finding is the first to link Zika with a birth defect other than microcephaly. 

‘This study can help guide clinical management and practice, as we observed that a high proportion of the infants with microcephaly had ophthalmologic lesions,’ the researchers wrote.

Zika has rapidly been spreading around Latin America and the Carribbean since an outbreak began in Brazil in April 2015.

The virus is typically transmitted by mosquito, causing mild symptoms in about 20 per cent of cases, while most people experience no illness at all.

However, Zika is suspected of causing a spike in reported microcephaly cases among babies in areas of Brazil with outbreaks.

As of January, the Brazilian Ministry of Health reported 3,174 newborns with microcephaly.

The study, published in the journal JAMA Opthamology, evaluated the ocular findings of infants who are suspected of having developed microcephaly as a result of congenital Zika virus.

The examinations were conducted in December.

Twenty-three of the 29 mothers in the study reported having mild Zika symptoms during pregnancy, such as rash, fever, joint pain, headache or itch.

Of those 23 mothers, 18 exhibited the symptoms during their first trimester of pregnancy.

Doctors noticed eye abnormalities in 10 of the children – and of the 20 eyes in those 10 children, 17 eyes had defects.

Furthermore, seven of those children had abnormalities in both eyes.

Most of the affected babies had black lesions in the back of their eye.

Other common eye defects in the babies included damage on the retina, in addition to abnormalities in blood vessels and tissue around the retina – which can cause them to wither away.

Doctors also spotted optical nerve damage in eight eyes, as well as other findings.

The study concluded: ‘Infants with microcephaly should undergo routine ophthalmologic evaluations to identify such lesions.

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