title: Cytomegalovirus reinfections in healthy seroimmune women.
abstract: Cytomegalovirus (CMV) reinfections have been associated with damaging congenital infection and adverse outcomes in transplant recipients. To determine the frequency of and risk factors for CMV reinfections, 205 seropositive women were followed up prospectively. The appearance of new antibody specificity against 1 of 4 polymorphic epitopes was considered as evidence of CMV reinfection. Approximately one-third of the study participants (59 [29%] of 205) were noted to have CMV reinfection during follow-up. None of the exposure factors were associated with CMV reinfection. Women with antibodies against at least 1 of the 4 antigens at baseline had a 63% decreased risk of reinfection, suggesting a protective role for strain-specific immunity.
authors.affiliation: Departments of Pediatrics, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA. sross@peds.uab.edu
authors.forename: Shannon A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Ross
authors.forename: Nitin
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Arora
authors.forename: Zdenek
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Novak
authors.forename: Karen B
authors.initials: KB
authors.lastname: Fowler
authors.forename: William J
authors.initials: WJ
authors.lastname: Britt
authors.forename: Suresh B
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Boppana
mesh_terms: D001741:Black or African American; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000097:blood*; D003586:Cytomegalovirus Infections / Q000276:immunology* / Q000821:virology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007074:Immunoglobulin G; D049590:Postpartum Period; D044465:White People
chemical_list: D000914:Antibodies, Viral; D007074:Immunoglobulin G