Brazil warns against pregnancy due to spreading virus
By Shasta Darlington, CNN
Updated 1116 GMT (1916 HKT) December 24, 2015 | Video Source: CNN
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| cnn.com |
Rio de Janeiro (CNN)Brazilian health officials are dishing out some unusual advice these days: Don't get pregnant.
That's the message for would-be parents, especially in the country's northeast, after officials linked a mosquito-borne virus called Zika to a surge in newborn microcephaly, a neurological disorder that can result in incomplete brain development.
"It's a very personal decision, but at this moment of uncertainty, if families can put off their pregnancy plans, that's what we're recommending," Angela Rocha, the pediatric infectologist at Oswaldo Cruz Hospital in Brazil's hardest-hit state, told CNN.
Behind Brazil's outbreak
More than 2,400 suspected cases of microcephaly have been reported this year in 20 Brazilian states, compared with 147 cases last year. Doctors are investigating 29 related infant deaths.
Microcephaly results in babies being born with abnormally small heads that cause, often serious, developmental issues and sometimes early death.
As a result, six states have declared a state of emergency. In Pernambuco state alone, more than 900 cases have been reported.
"These are newborns who will require special attention their entire lives. It's an emotional stress that just can't be imagined," Rocha said. "Here in Pernambuco, we're talking about a generation of babies that's going to be affected."
When the cases of microcephaly started to soar last month, doctors noticed they coincided with the appearance of the Zika virus in Brazil. They soon discovered that most of the affected mothers reported having Zika-like symptoms during early pregnancy -- mild fever, rash and headaches.
On November 28, Brazil's Health Ministry announced that during an autopsy it had found the Zika virus in a baby born with microcephaly, establishing a link between the two.
"This is an unprecedented situation, unprecedented in world scientific research," the ministry said on its website.
Research continues to determine if Zika actually causes microcephaly and further establish an association.
Initially concentrated in northeastern Brazil, many cases of microcephaly have now been detected in Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo to the south, fueling fears across the country.
Patricia Compassi, from Sao Paulo state, has received an outpouring of support and sympathy on social media after she opened up on national television about her son Lorenzo, born with microcephaly in November.
"It's been very difficult because initially the ultrasounds were normal," she told Globo TV in an interview. Early in her pregnancy, she woke up with a rash all over face and achy joints -- symptoms that doctors initially attributed to a food allergy and now associate with Zika.
Toward the end of her term, doctors determined her baby would be born with microcephaly.
"There are days that I cry, but just looking at him gives me strength," she said.
巴西衛生局最近提出一則不太尋常的建議：請國人避免懷孕。
在政府發現一種由蚊子傳播的病毒Zika會導致新生兒小頭畸形後，即對準爸媽，尤其是巴西北邊的人民發布這個重大訊息，小頭畸形是一種神經疾病，讓腦部無法健全發展。
「這是非常私人的決定，但在這種不確定的當下，如果家庭可以先拖延懷孕計畫，我們認為這樣是最好的。」在疫情最嚴重的當地醫院兒科感染學家Rocha告訴CNN。
疫情爆發的背後真相
今年巴西已有20個省份，舉報超過2,400待確診案例，去年僅147例。而醫生們正在調查29個嬰兒死亡相關案例。
小頭畸形主要是嬰兒在出生時其頭部異常小顆，導致嚴重的發展問題，且有早死的可能。
因此，有6省宣佈進入緊急狀態。其中Pernambuco省病例即超過900例。
「這些新生兒需要100%特別照護，這種情緒壓力是無法想像的。」Rocha說。「在Pernambuco省，我們都在談論這一代被感染的孩子。」
自上個月以來小頭畸形案例激升，醫生們注意到與Zika病毒的出現有交集。很快地他們便發現這些被感染的母親在懷孕初期就有類Zika病徵出現，例如輕微發燒，長疹子或頭痛。
11月28日，衛生局長正式表示驗屍結果證明小頭畸形與Zika有關連，將影響嬰兒發育。
「這狀況從沒發生過，對世界科學研究來說是前所未有的。」部長在網站上宣稱。
而研究正在進一步調查Zika實際對小頭畸形造成的影響，試圖建立其關聯。
起初集中在巴西北邊的小頭畸形症，而今在聖保羅等地也發現了許多病例，整個國家人心惶惶。
來自聖保羅的Compassi，在國家電視頻道公布他在11月生的嬰兒有小頭畸形症後，接受了許多幫助及社會媒體的關注。
「這真的令人難以接受，因為一開始超音波都很正常。」他在Globo TV專訪時說道。在懷孕初期，他的臉上跟關節長滿了疹子，醫生起初還認定是食物過敏，結果現在才知道跟Zika有關。
分娩後，醫生告訴他，嬰兒得了小頭畸形症。
「我時常哭泣，但只要看著小孩就能恢復元氣。」他說。
dish out 拋出
infectologist (n.) 感染學家
microcephaly (n.) 小頭畸形
autopsy (n.) 驗屍
fuel (v.) 使…加劇
ultrasound (n.) 超音波
achy (adj.) 微弱的
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