Children’s National Health System has formed the only dedicated clinical Congenital Zika Virus Program in the mid-Atlantic region, and one of the first in the country, with the goal of providing accurate diagnoses and condition management for pregnant women and newborns affected in utero by the Zika virus.
The program, a collaboration between the Fetal Medicine Institute and Division of Infectious Disease, is led by Adré J. du Plessis, MBChB, MPH, Chief of Fetal and Transitional Medicine, and Roberta DeBiasi, MD, Chief of Infectious Disease, who, along with other Children’s National clinicians and scientists, are a part of the team that published a paper in the New England Journal of Medicinedefinitively linking the Zika virus to severe brain defects and explained the impact of extended infections. The team also is actively involved in ongoing research working toward furthering understanding of the virus and its consequences. The care delivered at Children’s is driven by this world-class scientific expertise, and you and your patient families have access to the nation’s foremost experts in the Zika virus to use as your go-to resource for Zika information and guidance.
In the Congenital Zika Virus Program, your pregnant patients receive comprehensive diagnostics and consultation through streamlined blood testing and advanced fetal imaging, unmatched anywhere else in the mid-Atlantic region. Using state-of-the-art equipment, internationally-renowned developing brain and infectious disease specialists guide Zika-affected pregnancies through the fetal period and oversee the care of Zika-affected infants after delivery in a compassionate and caring environment. Children’s clinicians are recognized as national leaders in next-generation neuro-imaging techniques, and a variety of divisions work together to offer multidisciplinary support and coordinated care to infants born with disabilities.
Postnatal and pediatric care and clinical support is provided by a multidisciplinary team of fetal and pediatric neurologists, physical therapists, infectious disease experts, and neurodevelopmental physicians, and your infant patients will have access to over 40 subspecialty programs offered at Children’s as they grow.
The Congenital Zika Virus Program works closely with you to help streamline and coordinate all testing and schedule all follow-up for your patients, as needed.
As the nation prepares for possible wide-spread transmission of the Zika virus, rest assured that the Children’s team is well-positioned and prepared to provide you and your patients the information and care they may need.
If you, any of your pregnant patients, or parents of your newborn patients have questions or concerns about a possible Zika virus exposure, the Congenital Zika Virus Program is available to help you address this issue and support you with your patients’ condition management plans. Call us at 202-476-7409 or email fetalmedicine@childrensnational.org
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