Fatal Zika virus infection in the Americas: A systematic review.

INTRODUCTION: While death due to Zika virus (ZIKV) infection has been described, reports of fatal cases have been infrequent and no systematic reviews on the subject have been published. METHODS: A systematic review of the literature in four databases was performed to assess fatal outcomes of postnatal ZIKV infection and the available evidence that links ZIKV infection to death. RESULTS: Three hundred and eleven articles were retrieved; 20 of them were epidemiological reports from surveillance agencies and ministries of health. After screening by abstract and title, 59 articles were selected for full-text assessment. Of these, 35 were excluded (with reasons) and 24 were finally included for qualitative analysis. A total of 51 reported deaths associated with ZIKV infection in nine countries were identified. The majority of cases (56.9%) were not related to Guillain-Barré syndrome. Cases from three countries accounted for 67.6% of the deaths. ZIKV infection was laboratory-confirmed in the majority of cases (64.7%). DISCUSSION: ZIKV was not considered to be a dangerous, and much less a lethal pathogen, until very recently. However, an increasing number of fatalities have been published in the literature since the first death was reported in 2016. Additional research is needed to elucidate factors that may mediate the pathogenesis of severe, atypical, and fatal disease.

Human melioidosis reported by ProMED.

OBJECTIVE: There are limited sources describing the global burden of emerging diseases. A review of human melioidosis reported by ProMED was performed and the reliability of the data retrieved assessed in comparison to published reports. The effectiveness of ProMED was evaluated as a source of epidemiological data by focusing on melioidosis. METHODS: Using the keyword 'melioidosis' in the ProMED search engine, all of the information from the reports and collected data was reviewed using a structured form, including the year, country, gender, occupation, number of infected individuals, and number of fatal cases. RESULTS: One hundred and twenty-four entries reported between January 1995 and October 2014 were identified. A total of 4630 cases were reported, with death reported in 505 cases, suggesting a misleadingly low overall case fatality rate (CFR) of 11%. Of 20 cases for which the gender was reported, 12 (60%) were male. Most of the cases were reported from Australia, Thailand, Singapore, Vietnam, and Malaysia, with sporadic reports from other countries. CONCLUSIONS: Internet-based reporting systems such as ProMED are useful to gather information and synthesize knowledge on emerging infections. Although certain areas need to be improved, ProMED provided good information about melioidosis.

Melioidosis: ¿una enfermedad esporádica o emergente en Colombia? / Melioidosis: A sporadic or an emerging disease in Colombia?

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