Zika virus (ZIKV) viremia is reported as low and transient; however, these estimates rely on limited data. We report RNA loads in sera collected from symptomatic patients during the 2013‐2014 French Polynesian ZIKV outbreak. We performed molecular detection of ZIKV RNA in sera from 747 patients presenting with suspected acute phase ZIKV infection. Among patients with confirmed infection, we analyzed the duration of viremia, assessed viral RNA loads and recorded the main clinical symptoms. A total of 210/747 (28.1%) sera tested positive using a ZIKV‐specific RT‐PCR. Viral RNA loads in symptomatic patients that ranged from 5 to 3.7 × 106 copies/mL (mean 9.9 × 104 copies/mL) were not related to a particular clinical presentation, and were significantly lower than those previously obtained from asymptomatic ZIKV infected blood donors. The rate of detection of ZIKV RNA in sera from suspected cases of acute phase ZIKV infection was low. ZIKV RNA loads were lower in symptomatic patients compared to asymptomatic blood donors and were lower than RNA loads usually reported in dengue infections. As there is no abrupt onset of symptoms in ZIKV infections, we suggest that infected patients sought for medical attention when viremia was already decreasing or had resolved.

Purpose To compare the effects of 2 different media on embryo morphology and development at days 2/3. Method Six hundred seventy-six attempts from 512 couples were included in this prospective auto-controlled study. Sibling oocytes of all couples undergoing an IVF (n=286) or ICSI (n=390) attempt were randomly assigned to either GIII series (Vitrolife) or ISM (Medicult) media. Primary end points were fertilization and embryo morphology rates. Conclusions Embryo morphology at days 2/3 was significantly enhanced when the embryos were cultured in GIII series.

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