Responding to the Zika Epidemic: Preparation of a Neurodevelopmental Testing Protocol to Evaluate Young Children in Rural Guatemala

Abstract

The ongoing Zika virus (ZIKV) epidemic in Latin America presented a unique opportunity to develop a neurodevelopmental assessment protocol for children in a lower middle-income country. Although studies of neurodevelopment in young children have taken place in many diverse global settings, we are not aware of any study that has provided a high level of detail about how a measure was selected and then specifically translated and adapted in a low-resource setting. Here, we describe considerations in measurement selection and then the process of translation and adaptation to assess neurodevelopmental outcomes of infants and young children with postnatal exposure to ZIKV in rural Guatemala. We provide a framework to other research teams seeking to develop similar assessment models across the globe.