Ok, so the real headline says, "Rare Zika Complication Hits 30 in Puerto Rico; CDC Expects More." They are talking...
Ok, so the real headline says, "Rare Zika Complication Hits 30 in Puerto Rico; CDC Expects More." They are talking about Guillain-Barre Syndrome http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/guillain-barre-syndrome/basics/definition/con-20025832. It's a neurological condition that can affect adults and lead to paralysis and can be serious.
There was a reported spike in Guillain-Barre in French Polynesia during the 2013-2014 Zika outbreak. There has been an approximately 4 times higher rate of Guillain-Barre associated with the Zika outbreak in Brazil. It has clearly shown up in Puerto Rico.
It struck me that a number of places are pretty cavalier about oh, people recover and there's just some numbness or tingling or weakness; it's fine. Then I looked it up. There's a paper from 2014 talking about how the few studies of long-term QOL (quality of life) for Guillain-Barre patients are poor quality, and there's a need for more research. Then there's the paper about how some patients have post-traumatic stress. Not to mention you can have relapses.
I feel like this is definitely one of those situations where a small percentage of people can add up to larger numbers and while damaged babies is definitely a headline-grabber, you'd think people with potentially permanent neurological damage would be getting a little attention, as well, because that seems pretty scary to me.
For perspective, some people argued retrospectively that President Franklin Roosevelt had Guillain-Barre, not Polio. Not that it would have made any difference to his outcome at the time. So, yeah. This should be on an equal scare par with the babies if you are trying to get the public to understand the risks of this disease.
http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/zika-virus-outbreak/rare-zika-complication-hits-30-puerto-rico-cdc-expects-more-n633781
http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/zika-virus-outbreak/rare-zika-complication-hits-30-puerto-rico-cdc-expects-more-n633781
There was a reported spike in Guillain-Barre in French Polynesia during the 2013-2014 Zika outbreak. There has been an approximately 4 times higher rate of Guillain-Barre associated with the Zika outbreak in Brazil. It has clearly shown up in Puerto Rico.
It struck me that a number of places are pretty cavalier about oh, people recover and there's just some numbness or tingling or weakness; it's fine. Then I looked it up. There's a paper from 2014 talking about how the few studies of long-term QOL (quality of life) for Guillain-Barre patients are poor quality, and there's a need for more research. Then there's the paper about how some patients have post-traumatic stress. Not to mention you can have relapses.
I feel like this is definitely one of those situations where a small percentage of people can add up to larger numbers and while damaged babies is definitely a headline-grabber, you'd think people with potentially permanent neurological damage would be getting a little attention, as well, because that seems pretty scary to me.
For perspective, some people argued retrospectively that President Franklin Roosevelt had Guillain-Barre, not Polio. Not that it would have made any difference to his outcome at the time. So, yeah. This should be on an equal scare par with the babies if you are trying to get the public to understand the risks of this disease.
http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/zika-virus-outbreak/rare-zika-complication-hits-30-puerto-rico-cdc-expects-more-n633781
http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/zika-virus-outbreak/rare-zika-complication-hits-30-puerto-rico-cdc-expects-more-n633781
Yay? Oy.
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