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Published on: October 17, 2018
Epidemiology of Pediatric Zika Virus Infections
Isabel Griffin1, Guoyan Zhang2, Danielle Fernandez2
1Department of Epidemiology, Disease Control, and Immunization Services, Florida Department of Health in Miami-Dade County, Miami, Florida; and isabel.griffin@flhealth.gov.
Insights
Pediatric Zika virus (ZIKV) infections in Miami-Dade County during the 2016 outbreak predominantly showed mild symptoms. Most infected children had only two of the four main ZIKV symptoms and often had sick household members.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Infectious Diseases
- Epidemiology
- Virology
Background:
- Local transmission of Zika virus (ZIKV) was confirmed in Miami-Dade County, Florida, in July 2016.
- This study focuses on the epidemiology of pediatric ZIKV infections, including both locally acquired and travel-associated cases.
Purpose of the Study:
- To describe the characteristics of pediatric Zika virus infections during the 2016 Miami-Dade County outbreak.
- To analyze the clinical presentation and epidemiological factors of ZIKV in children aged 1 to 17 years.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective analysis of children (1-17 years) tested for ZIKV between October 2015 and March 2017.
- Data analysis included demographics, exposure origin, symptomology, hospitalizations, and laboratory findings (viremia, viruria, antibodies).
Main Results:
- Out of 478 confirmed ZIKV cases, 33 (6.9%) were in children. Twenty-seven (82.3%) pediatric cases were travel-associated.
- The median age was 11 years, with 51.5% being boys and 69.9% Hispanic. Among symptomatic children, rash was universal, fever occurred in 80.6%, conjunctivitis in 29.0%, and arthralgia in 22.6%.
- A significant proportion of symptomatic children presented with only two (48.5%) or three (24.2%) of the four main ZIKV symptoms.
Conclusions:
- The majority of pediatric ZIKV cases during the 2016 outbreak exhibited mild illness, often with only two cardinal symptoms.
- Pediatric ZIKV infections were frequently linked to symptomatic individuals within the same household, suggesting potential for intrafamilial transmission.
Background And Objective:
In July 2016, local transmission of Zika virus (ZIKV) was announced in Miami-Dade County, Florida. In this report, we describe the epidemiology of pediatric ZIKV infections in locally acquired and travel-associated cases.
Methods:
All children aged 1 to 17 years tested for ZIKV between October 1, 2015, and March 29, 2017, were included. SAS 9.4 was used to analyze age, sex, race and/or ethnicity, origin of exposure, onset date, affiliation with a household cluster, clinical symptoms, hospitalizations, viremia, viruria, and antibody detection in specimens.
Results:
Among 478 confirmed ZIKV cases in Miami-Dade County, 33 (6.9%) occurred in children (1-17 years). Twenty-seven (82.3%) cases were travel-associated. The median age of a pediatric Zika case patient was 11 years. Seventeen (51.5%) case patients were boys, and 23 (69.9%) were Hispanic. Among 31 symptomatic cases, all reported having rash, 25 (80.6%) reported fever, 9 (29.0%) reported conjunctivitis, and 7 (22.6%) reported arthralgia. Sixteen (48.5%) cases reported 2 of 4 and 8 (24.2%) reported 3 of 4 main symptoms.
Conclusions:
This report found that the majority of children identified during the 2016 ZIKV outbreak only presented with 2 of the 4 main symptoms. In addition, pediatric ZIKV cases were frequently associated with symptomatic household members.
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