A study published in Pediatric Research found that children who were exposed to the Zika virus while they were in the womb but did not develop birth defects or congenital Zika syndrome (CZS) may still be different from children who were not exposed in some aspects of cognitive development, mood, and mobility.
These results imply that as they get older, children who have been exposed to the Zika virus may need greater care and supervision.
The study’s lead author, Sarah Mulkey, M.D., Ph.D., a prenatal-neonatal neurologist at the Prenatal Pediatrics Institute at Children’s National Hospital, believes there are still many unsolved issues about the long-term effects of Zika on children exposed in utero.
“These findings are another piece of the puzzle that provides insight into the long-term neurodevelopment of children with prenatal Zika virus exposure. Further evaluation is needed as these children get older.”
As these kids become older, more testing is required. It is unclear how children who contracted the Zika virus while still in the womb during the 2015–2017 outbreak but did not have CZS or other major neurological issues may change as they age.
A group of researchers led by Dr. Mulkey compared the neurodevelopment of 70 children who had not been exposed to Zika during pregnancy and were the same age (3-5 years) with 55 children who had been exposed to Zika during pregnancy and were the same age (3-5 years) in Sabanalarga, Colombia.
The evaluations were carried out during the months of December 2020 and February 2021. Kids’ school readiness and motor abilities (including manual dexterity, aiming, and catching) were evaluated by medical specialists (including knowledge of colors, letters, numbers and shapes).
Parents filled out three questions concerning their child’s mental health (memory, emotions, and self-control), behavioral and physical health (responsibility, mobility), and parents’ own backgrounds and experiences as parents (including whether they felt distress).
Despite no statistically significant changes in cognitive function tests, parents of Zika-exposed children indicated their children had lower levels of mobility and responsibility compared to those of control children. Additionally, parents of 6 (11%) children exposed to the Zika virus experienced mood issues, compared to parents of 1 (%) control kid. Zika-exposed parents were also considerably more likely to indicate parental distress.
Professional testing showed no significant abnormalities in Zika-exposed children’s physical dexterity, such as their ability to grasp an item or post a coin through a slot, compared to control children. Zika-exposed and control children had low school readiness.
The authors point out that the parents’ actions may have been affected by what they thought or how worried they were about their child’s growth and development. The age and, therefore, developmental, disparities between the kid groups may have contributed to some of the discrepancies in the outcomes.
Though the children who were exposed to Zika are developing normally, the authors believe that they may need extra help when they get ready to enter school.
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