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NIH-funded study will monitor US Olympic, Paralympic teams for Zika infection
NIH-funded researchers will monitor the United States Olympic and Paralympic teams for Zika virus infection during the upcoming games in Rio de Janeiro.
The researchers hope to enroll at least 1,000 volunteers, and among their objectives, they want to study the reproductive outcomes of any Zika-infected volunteers for up to 1 year. American athletes, coaches and U.S. Olympic Committee staff are being asked to participate, as well as spouses or sexual partners who are traveling to Brazil.
According to the lead researcher, a collaboration with the USOC means access to a large group of people who likely have never come in contact with the virus.
“Participation in the study is completely voluntary,” Carrie L. Byington, MD, professor of pediatrics at the University of Utah and co-director of the Center for Clinical and Translational Science, told Infectious Disease News. “We anticipate that the majority of those who travel to Rio for the games will be Zika virus-naive and will offer an opportunity for us to more fully evaluate the consequences of infection.”
Carrie L. Byington
Byington chairs an infectious disease advisory group that was organized by the USOC to help about 3,000 athletes and staff members prepare to travel to Brazil, which has been at the center of the current Zika outbreak in the Americas. During briefings by the group, Byington and colleagues have been presenting the Zika study and enrolling participants. Currently, around 200 have signed up, with the enrollment period scheduled to end before the Paralympics start in September, Byington said.
Zika infection during pregnancy can cause microcephaly and other grave outcomes in children, and the virus has been associated with Guillain-Barré syndrome in adults. The bite of a female Aedes mosquito is still the most common cause of infection, but Zika virus also can be sexually transmitted and has been detected in semen up to 62 days after the onset of symptoms.
The CDC recommends that pregnant women not travel to Brazil, and that anyone who does go waits at least 8 weeks before trying to become pregnant, even in the absence of symptoms. Men with symptoms should wait at least 6 months, the CDC says.
Brazil has seen the bulk of Zika-related fetal malformations reported globally — more than 8,100 suspected cases during the current outbreak compared with seven in the United States — but the NIH-funded study is not focused solely on the virus’ effect on reproductive outcomes.
Byington and colleagues also are seeking information on potential risk factors for infection, and want to see where Zika persists in the body — blood, semen, vaginal secretions or saliva — and for how long.
Study volunteers will complete health surveys and submit bodily fluids that will be screened for Zika using testing kits provided by the CDC. Routine testing will help find anyone infected with the virus, which causes symptoms in only about 20% of cases.
The NIH said a pilot study in March and April was fully enrolled with 150 participants in just 2 days — one-third of whom said that either they or their partner planned to become pregnant within 12 months of competing in Brazil.
The Olympics begin Aug. 5; the Paralympics open Sept. 7.
“The study will provide much-needed information about symptomatic and asymptomatic Zika virus infection on reproductive health,” Byington said. “Information will include the duration of Zika virus in bodily fluids that may be associated with sexual or perinatal transmission. Also, because of the strong connection to the USOC, we have the opportunity to study — in a longitudinal fashion — the reproductive health, including pregnancy outcomes, in a cohort of Zika virus-naive individuals.” – by Gerard Gallagher
Disclosure: Byington reports no relevant financial disclosures.