More than 120 babies have been born with serious birth defects caused by the Zika virus in US territories, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Thursday.
Scientists reviewed 2,549 women who were possibly infected with Zika who had completed pregnancies; 2,464 resulted in live births while the others resulted in miscarriage, stillbirth or abortion.
Of the total number of pregnancies, 1,508, or about 60 percent, had confirmed Zika infection.
Among the women with confirmed Zika infection during the first trimester, 8 percent had a baby or fetus with Zika-associated birth defects. Of pregnancies affected in the second trimester, 5 percent resulted in birth defects and 4 percent were affected in the third trimester.
The findings, published in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, reviewed cases from American Samoa, Puerto Rico, Micronesia, the Marshall Islands and the US Virgin Islands, from Jan. 1, 2016, to April 25, 2017.
“As these latest findings illustrate, Zika virus poses a serious threat to pregnant women and their babies, regardless of when the infection occurs during the pregnancy,” said Dr. Anne Schuchat, acting director for the CDC. “Women in the US territories and elsewhere who have continued exposure to mosquitoes carrying Zika are at risk of infection. We must remain vigilant and committed to preventing new Zika infections.”
The findings were similar to another report that reviewed cases of pregnant women in US states and the District of Columbia. Puerto Rico was hit particularly hard by the Zika virus, and health officials announced earlier this week that the outbreak had ended.
Scientists have concluded that the Zika virus, which is spread through the Aedes aegypti mosquito and also through sexual contact, can result in microcephaly, a devastating birth defect in which a baby is born with an abnormally small head, possible joint problems and brain damage that can affect hearing and vision. The CDC has advised doctors to monitor babies who have been born after their mother was infected with Zika, as some of the symptoms may not appear until months later.
According to the CDC report, 59 percent of babies were tested for Zika virus infection at birth. Of all live births, 52 percent received CDC-recommended imaging tests and 79 percent received a hearing screening.
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