Zika’s first wave could infect 1.65 million childbearing women

As many as 1.65 million childbearing women in Central and South America could become infected by the Zika virus by the end of the first wave of the epidemic. Further, research shows that across Latin America and the Caribbean, more than 90 million infections could result from the initial stages of the spread of Zika. The projections also show that Brazil is expected to have the largest total number of infections (by more than three-fold), due to the country’s size and suitability for transmission.

The estimates reflect the sum of thousands of localized projections of how many people could become infected within every five by 5 km grid cell across Central and South America. Because the virus may not reach each corner of this region or may do so slowly, the total figure of 1.65 million represents an upper limit estimate for the first wave of the epidemic.

“It is difficult to accurately predict how many childbearing women may be at risk from Zika because a large proportion of cases show no symptoms,” says Andrew Tatem, professor of environmental sciences at the University of Southampton. “This largely invalidates methods based on case data and presents a formidable challenge for scientists trying to understand the likely impact of the disease on populations.”

In fact, an estimated 80 percent of Zika infections don’t show symptoms, and of those that do, some may be due to other viruses. Inconsistent case reporting and variable access to health care for different populations make these case-based data unreliable.

The latest research, published in the journal Nature Microbiology, constructs a picture of the projected spread of the disease by examining its likely impact at very local levels—at a scale of five kilometers squared. Full article here: http://www.futurity.org/zika-epidemic-estimate-1213022-2/