HUMAN CYTOMEGALOVIRUS IN BLOOD OF IMMUNOCOMPETENT PERSONS DURING PRIMARY INFECTION - PROGNOSTIC IMPLICATIONS FOR PREGNANCY

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) was investigated in peripheral blood leuk ocytes (PBL) of 52 immunocompetent patients (40 pregnant women) with p rimary HCMV infection by quantitative determination of pp65 antigenemi a, viremia, and leukoDNAemia. pp65 antigenemia was detected in 12 (57. 1%) of 21, 4 (25%) of 16, and 0 of 10 patients examined 1, 2, and 3 mo nths after onset, respectively. Viremia was detected in 5 (26.3%) of 1 9 patients during the first month only. LeukoDNAemia was detected in 2 0 of 20, 17 (89.5%) of 19, and 9 (47.3%) of 19 patients tested 1, 2, a nd 3 months after onset, respectively. Four (26.6%) of 15 patients wer e still DNAemia-positive at 4-6 months, whereas none were positive at >6 months. HCMV was not detected in PBL of 20 HCMV-immune donors or of 9 seropositive subjects with recurrent infection. Virus levels were l ow by all assays and did not correlate with clinical course of infecti on, intrauterine transmission, or severity of outcome. invasive proced ures in the presence of maternal leukoDNAemia did not seem to interfer e with vertical transmission of HCMV infection.