The recent publication on “long term persistence of Zika virus after the onset of symptoms” by Oliveira Souto et al. is very interesting.1 Oliveira Souto et al. noted for “the persistence of Zika virus in semen samples for long periods after infection.” In fact, the sexual transmission of Zika infection is possible and the existence of the Zika virus in the semen is confirmed.1 Nevertheless, there has never been any systematic report to study how long that the virus can remain in the reproductive system of the infected persons. As noted by Atkinson et al.,2 “viral RNA clearance times are not consistent and can be prolonged.” In the endemic area, the asymptomatic Zika virus infection is very common and the contamination of virus in the semen is a big concerned.3,4
Focusing on the present report on the period of existence of virus in semen, there are some interesting concerns. First, the exact period of existence cannot be told. Since the onset of symptom of Zika virus infection can be at any time after getting contact with the pathogenic virus.5 Therefore, the actual period of semen contamination can be very long and longer than 93 days. Second, the possibility that the patient get the repeated infection after the first onset cannot be ruled out. There is no proof that the identified virus in the semen in the mentioned case at the different period during follow-up is from the same origin.
