Zika virus may also have harmful cardiovascular effects

New research shows is the first to report cardiovascular complications related to Zika virus. In a study at the Institute of Tropical Medicine in Caracas, out of nine adult patients with Zika and no previous history of cardiovascular disease, all but one developed a heart rhythm problem and two-thirds had evidence of heart failure. It is known that Zika can cause microcephaly, a severe birth defect in babies born to women infected with the virus, and Guillain-Barré syndrome, a neurological condition that can lead to muscle weakness and, in severe cases, paralysis. The finding was presented at the American College of Cardiology’s 66th Annual Scientific Session. Karina Gonzalez Carta, M.D., cardiologist and research fellow at Mayo Clinic and the study’s lead author, explains: “We know that other mosquito-borne diseases, such as dengue fever and chikungunya virus, can affect the heart, so we thought we might see the same with Zika. But we were surprised by...