Analysis of the concept of the Zika Virus congenital syndrome

Abstract

The scope of this article is to analyze the concept of the Zika Virus Congenital Syndrome. It is a conceptual analysis, based on Walker and Avant. In order to operationalize the search, a systematic review was conducted. The essence of the concept of the Zika Virus Congenital Syndrome is determined by the following attributes: intracranial calcification, ventriculomegaly, and diminished brain volume. For this syndrome to occur, it is necessary to have the following antecedents: transplacental transmission of a mother infected by the bite of the Aedes SSP mosquito or by sexual contact. Accordingly, this entails a set of signs and symptoms that go beyond fetal or postnatal microcephaly, such as, for example, delayed neuropsychomotor development, auditory and visual abnormalities, craniofacial disproportion, overlapping cranial sutures, prominent occipital bone, excess nuchal skin, epilepsy, irritability, dyskinesia, hypertonia, hypotonia, hemiplegia, hemiparesis, spasticity and hyperreflexia. The concept of the Zika Virus Congenital Syndrome is newly acknowledged. The presence of the set of signs and symptoms by the Zika Virus Congenital Syndrome is determined by intracranial calcification and decreased brain volume, and the baby may present microcephaly at birth or subsequently.

Key words
Microcephaly; Zika virus infection; Congenital abnormalities