Zika-damaged babies could appear normal, says study

Dejailson Arruda and his daughter Luiza, who was born with microcephaly

Babies with brains damaged by the Zika virus might still appear normal, a large study of Brazilian babies shows.

Babies born with tiny heads - or microcephaly - is the main concern in the Zika outbreak. But the findings, published in the Lancet, show a fifth of babies that would be classed as normal actually had brain abnormalities.

And the Brazilian researchers warned Zika infection in newborns could also lead to brain damage.
Zika infection is largely mild, with most people having no symptoms.


But the World Health Organization has declared the Zika virus a global public health emergency because of the risk to newborn children.

In severe cases children can die and those that survive face intellectual disability and development delays.