Stillbirth offers another clue to possible damage from Zika

Image: A 2-month old baby, born with microcephaly, is examined by a neurologist at the Pedro I hospital in Campina Grande, Brazil. Felipe Dana/AP

statnews.com - February 25, 2016

A stillbirth in Brazil is offering another clue to possible health effects of the Zika virus, this time beyond the developing brain.

In addition to a devastating loss of brain tissue, this fetus also had another abnormality — severe swelling and fluid build-up in other parts of the body — that by itself can be life-threatening, researchers reported Thursday.

Researchers found the Zika virus in the fetus even though the mother didn’t report any symptoms of infection, according to the case report published in the journal PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases.

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