Stillbirth offers another clue to possible damage from Zika

The CDC said all 14 cases involve women whose only known risk factor is sexual contact with a male partner who had recently traveled to an area with local Zika transmissions.

However, beforehand, in Recife, she had said that the relationship between zika and microcephaly is still not clear, although the evidence is increasing. When researchers examined its tissues, they found genetic material from the Zika virus in its brain, spinal fluid, and amniotic fluid (which nourishes the fetus), but not in the heart, lung, liver, eyes, or placenta.

Despite a lack of causal evidence, the strength of the association has led the World Health Organisation to declare Zika an worldwide public health emergency. The WHO estimates Zika could eventually affect as many as 4 million people in the Americas and may spread to parts of Africa and Asia. The fetus also had arthrogryposis, a condition in which joints don’t move normally and may be stuck in place.

Between November 2015 and February 13 a total of 5,280 cases of babies born with microcephaly and/or central nervous system malformation were reported in Brazil, including 108 deaths.

At present, there is no vaccine against Zika. The woman did not report having symptoms of Zika infection or similar diseases like dengue fever or chikungunya during her pregnancy, and was not diagnosed with any of these conditions. Her pregnancy appeared normal through the first trimester, and she tested negative for other potential causes of microcephaly such as HIV, hepatitis C, rubella and toxoplasmosis.

A 20-year-old woman in Brazil gave birth to a stillborn child with signs of tissue swelling, severe microcephaly – a disorder characterized by an abnormally small head – and defects in the central nervous system (the brain and spinal cord). At 32 weeks, the fetus had died and doctors induced labor.

None of the new cases confirmed in Miami-Dade and Orange counties on Thursday are among pregnant women, though state officials reported this week that at least three expectant mothers had contracted the Zika virus while traveling outside of the state.

“We can’t really prove there’s a causal association, but it raises concerns”, he said.