A private fertility lab identified Zika virus in semen sample through an off label simple urine test.
"Zika was identified in semen with a high level of sensitivity and specificity after being processed in the urine transport kit, reported Hisham Greiss, MD, of Fertility & Cryogenics Lab in Downers Grove, Ill., and colleagues."
This is considered an "off label" use of the test as it is not approved for use in identifying semen contents. The test is Hologic's Aptima ZIKV, which the FDA has given emergency authorization to use for testing semen samples. The authors spiked 107 neat semen samples with 3 viral copies/mL of recombinant Zika virus a total of 238 times on six days. Researchers then tested cross-reactivity using samples from individuals who seroconverted for West Nile virus, Chagas, and Dengue, as well as recombinant Dengue, Chikungunya, HPV and Herpes simplex virus 1. The authors also tested Herpes simplex virus 2, Chlamydia and Gonorrhea for cross-reactivity.They also ran five negative control semen samples in each experiment, none of which showed reactivity with the ZIKV assay.
"For the first experiment on the 238 neat samples, there were 231 true positives and seven false negatives. The authors pointed out that neat semen is often viscous and had "gelatinous filaments" that could interfere with the test. But when these samples were rocked for 5 minutes and tested, four then became positive. However, in the second experiment, where the semen was processed in the testing kit, all 300 samples came back positive, resulting in a 100% sensitivity and specificity."
I am recommending that women of childbearing age and couples who want to get pregnant refrain from visiting high ZIKA areas. There is no conclusive data of treating ZIKA virus with I.V. Ozone, but my guess is that ozone would be beneficial to help contain and eradicate the virus. We have used I.V. Ozone with Dengue Fever, Lyme, Hepatitis (all kinds), Herpes, CMV, EBV virus and many more with good success.
