EAN congress, Copenhagen
Sunday, 29.5.2016; 8:30-10:00
Location: Hall B.
Chairs: E. Schmutzhard, R. Shakir
Epidemiology of Zika virus, present knowledge, future perspectives and
implications for Europe
John England, USA
Chair, WFN ZIKA committee, Louisiana State University, New Orleans
Zika virus infectivity and pathogenesis
John Hiscott, Rome, Italy.
Istituto Pasteur-Fondazione Cenci Bolognetti, Rome, Italy
Guillain-Barré Syndrome and Zika virus
Hugh Willison, Glasgow, UK
Neurological manifestation of Zika virus infections
in newborns and children
Andre Pessoa, Fortaleza, Brazil
Breaking news session: ZIKA virus Infections of the Nervous System
The mosquito-borne Zika Virus causes in most instances a febrile illness with minor systemic signs of infection; however it has been found to be associated wit polyradiculoneuritis Guillain-Barré (GBS), encephalitis and – in newborns in case of intrauterine infection – with microcephaly. The public has been alerted since only very recently this virus has been introduced to Latin America, mainly Brasil, a hitherto Zika-naive continent, causing hundreds of thousands of infections and hundreds of affections of the nervous system. Very recently, beside in Latin America, cases have been reported from the United States, Asia and even Europe, i.e. outside the original area of distribution, namely Sub-Saharan Africa and Polynesia, indicating the high potential of rapid spreading into other regions. In view of major societal events, mainly in Brazil (Summer Olympic Games 2016, Rio de Janeiro, Aug 5-21 ) the European Academy of Neurology has accepted the challenge to address this major public health problem in a Breaking News Session at the EAN Congress in Copenhagen, later this month. World renowned experts in the field will discuss the epidemiology of Zika virus, the present knowledge, future perspectives and implications for Europe, both for professional and recreational travellers, Zika virus infectivity and pathogenesis, the CNS infection and auto-immune reaction towards Zika virus, mainly Guillain-Barré Syndrome and the neurological manifestations of Zika virus infections in newborns and children, in particular malformations of the brain and skull, like microcephaly.
