title: Guillain-Barré syndrome associated with the Zika virus outbreak in Brazil.
abstract: Zika virus (ZIKV) is now considered an emerging flavivirosis, with a first large outbreak registered in the Yap Islands in 2007. In 2013, a new outbreak was reported in the French Polynesia, with associated cases of neurological complications including Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS). The incidence of GBS has increased in Brazil since 2015, what is speculated to be secondary to the ZIKV infection outbreak. The gold-standard test for detection of acute ZIKV infection is the polymerase-chain reaction technique, an essay largely unavailable in Brazil. The diagnosis of GBS is feasible even in resource-limited areas using the criteria proposed by the GBS Classification Group, which is based solely on clinical grounds. Further understanding on the relationship of ZIKV with neurological complications is a research urgency.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Medicina Interna Neurology, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
authors.forename: Lucas Masiêro
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Araujo
authors.affiliation: Divisão de Neurologia, Hospital da Restauração, Recife, PE, Brazil.
authors.forename: Maria Lucia Brito
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Ferreira
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Medicina Interna Neurology, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
authors.forename: Osvaldo Jm
authors.initials: OJ
authors.lastname: Nascimento
mesh_terms: D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D004196:Disease Outbreaks; D020275:Guillain-Barre Syndrome / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000821:virology*; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D000071243:Zika Virus Infection / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology