Arbovirus surveillance in pregnant women in north-central Nigeria, 2019-2022.

Abstract

The adverse impact of Zika (ZIKV), dengue (DENV), and chikungunya (CHIKV) virus infection in pregnancy has been recognized in Latin America and Asia but is not well studied in Africa. In Nigeria, we screened 1006 pregnant women for ZIKV, DENV and CHIKV IgM/IgG by rapid test (2019-2022). Women with acute infection were recruited for prospective study and infants were examined for any abnormalities from delivery through six months. A subset of rapid test-reactive samples were confirmed using virus-specific ELISAs and neutralization assays. Prevalence of acute infection (IgM+) was 3.8%, 9.9% and 11.8% for ZIKV, DENV and CHIKV, respectively; co-infections represented 24.5% of all infections. Prevalence in asymptomatic women was twice the level of symptomatic infection. We found a significant association between acute maternal ZIKV/DENV/CHIKV infection and any gross abnormal birth outcome (p=0.014). Further prospective studies will contribute to our understanding of the clinical significance of these endemic arboviruses in Africa.

• Authors: Jerry Ogwuche, Charlotte Ajeong Chang, Olukemi Ige, Atiene S Sagay, Beth Chaplin, Makshwar L Kahansim, Michael Paul, Michael Elujoba, Godwin Imade, Georgenia Kweashi, Yu-Ching Dai, Szu-Chia Hsieh, Wei-Kung Wang, Donald J Hamel, Phyllis J Kanki
• Journal: medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences (medRxiv) (Aug 08 2023) United States
• PMID: 37609234 (Publication Type: Preprint)