Predominance of arboviruses in acute encephalitis and Guillain–Barré syndrome: Findings from a prospective cohort in Northeast Brazil
International Journal of Infectious Diseases·
- DOI
- 10.1016/j.ijid.2026.108664
- PMID
- 41946444
- PMCID
- —
- OpenAlex
- W7149908072
- Study type
- Cohort study
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Article type
- journal-article
- Integrity
- current
Why this research matters now
The findings highlight arboviruses, particularly chikungunya, dengue, and the emerging Oropouche virus, as leading causes of acute neurological syndromes in Brazil. The authors emphasize that integrating multiplex viral panels with arboviral assays is essential for improved diagnosis, and that strengthened surveillance and molecular diagnostics are critical in regions with ongoing arboviral transmission.
Structured evidence summary
Research question
The study aimed to characterize the clinical, epidemiological, and laboratory profile of acute viral neurological syndromes in an arbovirus-endemic area of northeastern Brazil.
Study design
A prospective, hospital-based cohort study was conducted from March 2020 to August 2025. Patients with suspected viral neurological syndromes underwent systematic testing combining qRT-PCR and serology for arboviruses with multiplex PCR for classical neurotropic viruses, alongside clinical, imaging, EEG, and electromyography data collection.
Population and setting
The cohort included 132 hospitalized patients with suspected viral neurological syndromes in northeastern Brazil, an arbovirus-endemic region.
Main findings
Among 132 patients, encephalitis accounted for 58% and Guillain-Barré syndrome for 23% of cases. A viral etiology was identified in 42% of patients, predominantly arboviral. Chikungunya virus was the most frequent pathogen (41% of viral cases), followed by dengue virus (26%) and Oropouche virus (11%), while HSV-1 was rare. Guillain-Barré syndrome showed a significant upward trend and seasonal pattern, whereas encephalitis incidence remained stable.
Public-health relevance
The findings highlight arboviruses, particularly chikungunya, dengue, and the emerging Oropouche virus, as leading causes of acute neurological syndromes in Brazil. The authors emphasize that integrating multiplex viral panels with arboviral assays is essential for improved diagnosis, and that strengthened surveillance and molecular diagnostics are critical in regions with ongoing arboviral transmission.
Important limitations
This summary is limited to the supplied single-article abstract and metadata. The original paper is required for decision-grade interpretation, including details on clinical case definitions, diagnostic test performance characteristics, patient selection criteria, and potential biases inherent to hospital-based enrollment.
GIDS interpretation
This article was classified under Dengue and Chikungunya in Brazil with links to Diagnostics and Surveillance topics, reflecting its focus on etiological characterization of neurological syndromes in an endemic setting. The classifier links indicate the study's relevance for understanding diagnostic gaps and surveillance needs but do not represent real-time event detection.
Related GIDS surveillance
Literature context does not validate, explain, or change a surveillance signal. Exact and contextual relationships are shown separately.
Evidence relationships
This article has 13 auditable classifier relationships to diseases, places, topics, and study design.