Reflections on health and human rights in the context of the Zika epidemic: an integrative review

Berenice de Freitas Diniz; Rose Ferraz Carmo; Zélia Maria Profeta da  Luz

doi:10.5020/18061230.2025.16904

Authors

Berenice de Freitas Diniz Municipal Health Department of Betim, Betim, Minas Gerais, Brazil https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2711-5820
Rose Ferraz Carmo School of Public Health of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9703-8547
Zélia Maria Profeta da Luz René Rachou Institute, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0819-3025

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5020/18061230.2025.16904

Keywords:

Zika virus, Human Rights, Sexual and reproductive rights, Right to health, People with disabilities

Abstract

Objective: To analyze how health and human rights were interconnected during the early stages of the Zika virus epidemic. Method: This integrative literature review was conducted between 2015 and 2019 using the descriptors Zika virus, human rights, sexual and reproductive rights, right to health, socioeconomic rights, and persons with disabilities. The descriptors were combined in pairs, always using Zika virus as the primary descriptor and linking it to the others through the Boolean operator AND. Searches were performed in the LILACS, SciELO, PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science databases. Results: A total of 16 articles were selected, addressing different dimensions of the epidemic response, including the protection of sexual and reproductive rights, care for children with disabilities resulting from congenital Zika syndrome, intersectoral action, communication in contexts of uncertainty, and public health and sanitation policies. The analyses showed that social, gender, and territorial inequalities intensified the impacts of the epidemic, disproportionately affecting socially vulnerable populations. Conclusion: The findings highlight the need for intersectoral public policies capable of ensuring comprehensive care for affected families, protecting sexual and reproductive rights, and guaranteeing access to information.

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Translation

This article is a translation in English of the article: Reflexões sobre saúde e direitos humanos em tempos de Zika: uma revisão integrativa

Author Biographies

Berenice de Freitas Diniz, Municipal Health Department of Betim, Betim, Minas Gerais, Brazil

Postdoctoral researcher in the Health, Education, and Citizenship Research Group at the René Rachou Institute - Oswaldo Cruz Foundation Minas. PhD in Collective Health from the Graduate Program in Collective Health at IRR/Fiocruz Minas. Master’s degree in Health Sciences from ICICT/Fiocruz. Bachelor’s degree in Information Science from Pontifical Catholic University of Minas Gerais. Holds lato sensu specializations in Public Health from PUC Minas; Communication and Health from ICICT/Fiocruz; Microrregional Health Management from SENAC; and Public Policy Management from State University of Campinas. She has been a municipal employee of the SUS in Betim since 1994, working in planning, health care delivery, participatory management, and social control, and has worked in the field of Work Management and Health Education since 2019. She has academic publications, teaching experience, extension activities, and research experience in collective health and public health, participatory management, social control within the SUS, health information, communication, and social mobilization. She is a faculty member at PUC Minas Betim and Contagem and is affiliated with the Health, Education, and Citizenship Research Group at the René Rachou Institute/Fiocruz Minas.

Rose Ferraz Carmo, School of Public Health of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil

Bachelor’s degree in Veterinary Medicine from the Federal University of Viçosa (2003), Master’s degree in Veterinary Medicine with concentration in Epidemiology (2006), and PhD in Veterinary Medicine with concentration in Epidemiology (2010). Completed a postdoctoral fellowship in Collective Health at the René Rachou Institute of the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (2010-2011). She currently works as an analyst in health education and research at the School of Public Health of the State of Minas Gerais (ESP-MG). She has experience in the field of Collective Health, mainly focusing on territory and health, health surveillance, and qualitative health research.

Zélia Maria Profeta da Luz, René Rachou Institute, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil

Bachelor’s degree in Pharmacy from the Federal University of Minas Gerais (1986), Master’s degree in Cellular and Molecular Biology from Fiocruz (1998), and PhD in Parasitology from UFMG (2003). She is a public health researcher at Fiocruz. She served as Director of Fiocruz Minas (2012-2017 and 2017-2021) and as Vice Director of Research, Technological Innovation, and Reference Laboratories at Fiocruz Minas from 2008 to 2012. She was also coordinator of the Reference Center for Leishmaniasis at Fiocruz Minas (2004-2009). Since February 2022, she has served as Coordinator of the Office for Regional and National Integration Strategies of the Presidency of Fiocruz. Beginning in 2025, she also became responsible for Institutional Relations at the Presidency of Fiocruz. Her research focuses on populations in situations of vulnerability, prevention and control of dengue, Zika, and chikungunya, with emphasis on social mobilization strategies for confronting these diseases. In 2021, she founded the Mining Disasters Observatory: Risk Management and Human Rights at Fiocruz Minas.