Not all Canadian travellers diagnosed with the Zika virus experienced mild symptoms, according to a new study published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal.

The study, published Monday, examined 1,118 travellers who returned from the Americas and attended seven travel medicine clinics in urban centres across the country between Oct. 2015 and Sept. 2016.

Of those 1,118 travellers, 41 (3.7 per cent) were diagnosed with Zika. Two of the travellers with Zika had symptoms resembling those of Guillain-Barre syndrome, which under severe circumstances can lead to temporary paralysis. One of the two travellers who experienced those symptoms also had Zika viral meningitis.

Rash and fever were the most common symptoms experienced by those diagnosed with the virus.

Of those diagnosed with Zika, 24 were women and 19 were of childbearing age. Three of those women were pregnant.

According to the study, congenital transmission occurred in two of the three pregnancies.

“Certainly we found a higher rate of complicated illness than we anticipated based on what we normally see coming back in ill returned travellers with other illnesses that are similar, like dengue,” The study’s author Dr. Andrea Boggild told CP24 Monday.

“Some of the complications included neurologic involvement, so symptoms including pins and needles and weakness and even florid Guillain-Barré syndrome that left people debilitated.”

No severe complications occurred in the 41 travellers in the study that were diagnosed with dengue, another mosquito-borne illness, Boggild said.

Forty of the 41 diagnosed with Zika contracted it through probable mosquito exposure and one case was confirmed to be sexually transmitted.

“We still recommend that pregnant women defer travel to areas where the Zika virus is being transmitted and we certainly advise sexual precautions while abroad and upon return,” Boggild added.

Boggild was quick to point out the study’s limitations. She noted that it only included people ill enough to be sent to a specialized clinic.

“Those who acquired mild or asymptomatic Zika virus infection during long-duration travel may not be represented in our database, because they may be less likely to seek care upon return,” the study read.

The author of the study also said that the cases identified in the research accounted for only 12 per cent of the 330 Zika cases confirmed by the Government of Canada as of Oct. 6, 2016.