Zika Virus and other viruses that cause neurological syndromes in patients treated at the Clinical Hospital of the University of Campinas: a prospective cohort study

Abstract

Acute infections of the nervous system are a medical emergency and most of these infections are caused by viruses. Among these, the most important are the human herpesviruses, enteroviruses and arboviruses. Zika virus fever are diseases caused by viruses of the genus Flavivirus, family Flaviviridae, transmitted mainly by mosquitoes Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus. Zika virus circulation in Brazil has been laboratory confirmed in April 2015 in samples from patients in Camaçari city, Bahia. In May they were confirmed by laboratory cases in Natal/RN, Sumaré and Campinas/SP, Maceió/AL and Belém/PA. The introduction of the virus in the state of São Paulo, in March 2016, the Adolfo Lutz Institute has confirmed about 162 positive cases for Zika, by RT-PCR. Of all laboratory confirmed cases, 136 are autochthonous cases, distributed in 24 towns and 26 imported cases. Whereas fever Zika virus is an emerging disease in Brazil leading occurrences of deaths, there is a rise in cases of microcephaly and neurological manifestations, which are associated with the increase of virus infection. The epidemiological situation in the past three years in São Paulo revealed an incidence of 59.1% cases of meningitis of probable viral etiology, without identification of the etiologic agent. Thus, the aim of this study is to identify viral agents that cause infection in the nervous system in patients treated at Clinical Hospital of University of Campinas with acute cases of neurological disorders who had lumbar puncture tests to the biochemical diagnostic tests. An aliquot of the same sample will be sent to the Virology Laboratory, Faculty of Medical Sciences, to perform the molecular biology tests of complementary viral diagnosis. The collections of these rates will be carried out during the period of one year after the project begin. Molecular Biology tests, such as PCR, RT-PCR and qPCR will be performed to identify genomic viral agents. This is the first study for detection and monitoring of viral infections in the nervous system that reveals the importance of this approach for the appropriate management of patients affected by these diseases and the planning of public health in Campinas/SP. (AU)