Dr. Ingrid Bonimy recently received training on Zika-related dangers during a PAHO/WHO seminar.
As Bahamian authorities wrestle with an increase in the number of Zika cases confirmed in the country, a Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH) official has participated in the effort by the Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO) to train Caribbean health personnel in the clinical management of severe neurological complications related to Zika virus, such as Guillain-Barré syndrome. The number of confirmed Zika cases in The Bahamas now stands at eight, among dozens of suspected cases.
Dr. Ingrid Bonimy, registrar for internal medicine at PMH, was at the PAHO/WHO training seminar in Barbados at the end of last week. The seminar comes ahead of the September 8 publication of the Epidemiological Update publication.
The organization confirmed that, to date, 45 countries and territories have confirmed local, vector-borne transmission of Zika virus disease in the Americas since 2015, and five countries in the Americas have reported sexually transmitted Zika cases.
Workshop
The workshop in Barbados takes place against a backdrop of increasing numbers of patients presenting with Guillain-Barré syndrome across the Caribbean. PAHO seeks to expand and strengthen the professional capacity to manage these cases.
Godfrey Xuereb, PAHO/WHO representative in Barbados and Eastern Caribbean countries, said, “The workshop aims to build the capacity of health professionals in the Caribbean so that they are better prepared to detect and treat patients with Guillain-Barré Syndrome.”
Based on scientific research, there is a consensus that Zika virus can trigger Guillain-Barré syndrome. Since June 2016, the number of cases of Guillain-Barré syndrome has been increasing in the Caribbean. For this reason, PAHO/WHO is working to expand and strengthen the professional capacity to provide adequate medical attention to these cases.
Pilar Ramón Pardo, chief of operations for the Zika Emergency Response at PAHO/WHO, explained that PAHO/WHO has brought experts at the highest level together so that Caribbean clinicians are better prepared to provide the care required for a person with a severe neurological disorder.
“These patients represent the most severe cases of infection Zika. They require a complex level of attention and care to prevent complications and speed their recovery,” she said.
Representatives from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the NHS Highland Raigmore Hospital (Inverness, UK), the University of Chile and the University of Costa Rica taught at the seminar, which is part of a series of training activities initiated in May this year, where health professionals from 16 Caribbean countries were oriented in the clinical management of Zika virus infection during pregnancy.
Guillain-Barré
New WHO guidelines for clinical management of patients with Guillain-Barré syndrome were outlined in the meeting, focusing on practical approaches to implementation in different countries. Dr. Bonimy and the other two dozen or so participants are expected to lead the process of developing locally adapted protocols to improve the clinical management of severe neurological cases involving Zika virus in their countries.Guillain-Barré syndrome is a rare condition in which the patient's immune system attacks the peripheral nerves. People of all ages can be affected, but it is most common in adults and males. In 20 to 25 percent of cases, the chest muscles are affected, making breathing difficult. The majority of those affected, even the most severely, fully recover.
K. Quincy Parker, Guardian Business Editor
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