Neonatal screening for congenital cytomegalovirus infection and hearing loss.
BACKGROUND
Congenital cytomegalovirus infection causes 20-30% of congenital sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) cases. Early identification of CMV attributable cases and their successful treatment are often hampered by the late appearance of the damage in a high proportion of children both symptomatic and asymptomatic at birth.


OBJECTIVE
To discuss the feasibility of a screening program aimed at finding congenitally infected babies followed by their audiological monitoring.


METHODS
Opinion-review article.


CONCLUSIONS
Frequency and severity of hearing loss due to congenital CMV suggest it maybe worthwhile setting up neonatal screening campaigns. Structures where SNHL can be diagnosed and treated exist already in many countries as part of universal neonatal audiological screening schemes. A test based on viral DNA extraction from neonatal dried blood spots on Guthrie cards and its amplification by means of a nested PCR (DBS test) seems to offer the best characteristics for use in screening. Clearly it will be necessary to calculate whether the costs of screening, diagnosis and follow-up, and the financial and emotional burden on the families of infected children, are up to the potential gain.
Barbi
Maria
M
Istituto di Virologia, Università di Milano, Via C. Pascal 38, 20133 Milano, Italy. maria.barbi@unimi.it
Binda
Sandro
S
Caroppo
Simona
S
Primache
Valeria
V
D003587:Cytomegalovirus / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D003586:Cytomegalovirus Infections / Q000150:complications* / Q000151:congenital* / Q000175:diagnosis; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000032:analysis / Q000097:blood; D006319:Hearing Loss, Sensorineural / Q000209:etiology* / Q000821:virology; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D015997:Neonatal Screening
D004279:DNA, Viral