Singh Veena D, Lathrop Sarah L
From the Office of the Medical Investigator (Drs Singh and Lathrop), Albuquerque, New Mexico; and the Department of Pathology (Drs Singh and Lathrop), University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Albuquerque.
Arch Pathol Lab Med. 2017 Jan;141(1):82-84. doi: 10.5858/arpa.2016-0327-SA. Epub 2016 Sep 8.
-Medical examiners and coroners have long been an integral component of public health, often being the first to recognize and describe emerging infectious diseases. Given their experience and access, medical examiners and coroners will provide valuable contributions to better understanding Zika virus infection and its sequelae.
-To review past examples of medical examiner/coroner involvement in recognition of emerging infectious diseases and describe how medical examiners and coroners will be critical in understanding the pathophysiology of Zika infections.
-Review of the existing literature on the role of medical examiners and coroners in the identification of emergent infections and the available literature on Zika virus.
-Medical examiners and coroners have played a crucial role in identifying numerous emerging infectious diseases such as hantavirus pulmonary syndrome and West Nile virus, and have the expertise and experience to aid in elucidating the pathophysiologic effects of Zika virus and tracking its distribution and risk factors.
-Medical examiners and coroners will be a significant factor in the unified public health approach needed to mitigate the effects of Zika virus and other, heretofore unrecognized, infectious diseases.
长期以来，法医和验尸官一直是公共卫生的重要组成部分，往往最先识别和描述新出现的传染病。鉴于他们的经验和获取信息的途径，法医和验尸官将为更好地了解寨卡病毒感染及其后遗症做出宝贵贡献。
回顾法医/验尸官参与识别新出现传染病的过往实例，并描述法医和验尸官在理解寨卡病毒感染的病理生理学方面将如何发挥关键作用。
回顾关于法医和验尸官在识别新发感染中作用的现有文献以及关于寨卡病毒的现有文献。
法医和验尸官在识别众多新出现的传染病（如汉坦病毒肺综合征和西尼罗河病毒）方面发挥了关键作用，并且具备专业知识和经验，有助于阐明寨卡病毒的病理生理效应，追踪其分布及风险因素。
在减轻寨卡病毒及其他尚未被认识的传染病影响所需的统一公共卫生方法中，法医和验尸官将是一个重要因素。
