This recent NEJM editorial provides a good overview of the worrying global situation concerning four important arboviruses: West Nile, Chikungunya, Zika and Dengue.
This presentation, CHIKV ZIKA Ferguson Feb 2015 includes microbiological and clinical overviews and data on recent Pacific nation epidemiology.
A recent ASM News item highlights recent research suggesting that perinatal transmission of Chikungunya occurs from viraemic mothers and results in severe neurological manifestations in 50% and mortality in 17%. CHIKV apparently does not infect the placenta but is transmitted during birth, infecting the neonatal brain via the choroid plexus and then targeting leptomeningeal cells.
STOP PRESS: ABC news report Zika virus found in Australian travellers returning from South America, virologist says.
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