Dear Editor:
We read the article on zika microcephaly, which was published in the September-October 2017 issue of ICNS with a great interest.1 Kolikonda et al1 stated, “Even infants with normal head circumference at birth might develop microcephaly in early infancy because of deceleration in head growth.”1 The authors also stated, “Regular developmental follow-up is indicated.”1 We would like to share our ideas and experience regarding this issue. In fact, the zika virus infection-related microcephaly is an important issue in clinical neurology. Prevention of the infection is an important concept, but it is usually difficult to achieve, and many questions still remain regarding the zika virus. In our setting, tropical Asia, the zika virus infection is endemic, and there are many asymptomatic exposures among the local population.2 Interesting to note, however, is that zika microcephaly is not a problem in our region,3 and there has been no cases of late deceleration of head growth in exposed infants. Obviously more research is needed to fully understand the zika virus and its impact in clinical neurology.
REFERENCES
- 1.Kolikonda MK, Srinivasan K, Enja M, Sagi V, Lippmann S. Zika microcephaly. Innov Clin Neurosci. 2017;14(9-10):11–12. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- 2.San K, Rajadhan V. Seroprevalence of Zika virus in Cambodia: a preliminary report. Adv Lab Med Int. 2016;6(3):37–40. [Google Scholar]
- 3.Sriwijitalai W, Wiwanitkit V. Zika virus infection, pregnancy and microcephaly. Rev Bras Ginecol Obstet. 2018;40(1):53. doi: 10.1055/s-0037-1605375. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]