Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2021 Jul 30;62(2):E372-E376.
doi: 10.15167/2421-4248/jpmh2021.62.2.1800. eCollection 2021 Jun.

Seroprevalence of antibodies to cytomegalovirus in pregnant women in the Apulia region (Italy)

Claudia Maria Trombetta  1 , Simonetta Viviani  1 , Emanuele Montomoli  1   2 , Serena Marchi  1
Affiliations

Seroprevalence of antibodies to cytomegalovirus in pregnant women in the Apulia region (Italy)

Claudia Maria Trombetta et al. J Prev Med Hyg. .

Abstract

Introduction: Cytomegalovirus is ubiquitous and easily transmitted by contact. Following the first infection, the virus becomes latent and periodic reactivation could occur due to immunosuppression. If the infection is acquired in pregnancy, especially in the first trimester, the foetal consequences could be serious. The present study was conducted to assess the serological profile of pregnant women with respect to cytomegalovirus in Apulia from 2016 to 2019.

Methods: Serum samples were tested by commercial ELISA kit for the detection of specific IgM and IgG antibodies against cytomegalovirus.

Results: The data showed that most of the pregnant women (70.8%), especially those of ≥ 40 years of age (80.6%), has antibodies against cytomegalovirus, though these do not confer fully protective immunity against infection by different strains nor can prevent the re-activation of the latent one. Conversely, most of the youngest women are seronegative (44.4% in women < 25 years of age) and vulnerable during pregnancy.

Conclusions: Currently, cytomegalovirus screening for pregnant women is not mandatory in Italy. Considering that congenital cytomegalovirus is the leading non-genetic cause of sensorineural hearing loss, it would be extremely useful and cost-saving to screen women of childbearing age and women at early stage of pregnancy for cytomegalovirus infection in addition to increase awareness of cytomegalovirus infection and consequences among pregnant women, health care workers and the public.

Keywords: Apulia region; Cytomegalovirus; Italy; Pregnancy; Seroprevalence.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest statement The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Bale JF. Congenital infections. Neurol Clin 2002;20:1039-60. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0031-3955(16)38370-510.1016/S0031-3955(16)38370-5 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Rasti S, Ghasemi FS, Abdoli A, Piroozmand A, Mousavi SG, Fakhrie-Kashan Z. ToRCH “co-infections” are associated with increased risk of abortion in pregnant women. Congenit Anom (Kyoto) 2016;56:73-8. https://doi.org/10.1111/cga.1213810.1111/cga.12138 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Manicklal S, Emery VC, Lazzarotto T, Boppana SB, Gupta RK. The “silent” global burden of congenital cytomegalovirus. Clin Microbiol Rev 2013;26:86-102. https://doi.org/10.1128/CMR.00062-1210.1128/CMR.00062-12 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Gilden DH, Tyler KL. Herpesvirus infection and peripheral neuropathy, in peripheral neuropathy (Fourth Edition). Dyck PJ, Thomas S. (Eds.) 2005. Hardcover ISBN: 9780721694917
    1. Swanson EC, Schleiss MR. Congenital cytomegalovirus infection: new prospects for prevention and therapy. Pediatr Clin North Am 2013;60:335-49. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pcl.2012.12.00810.1016/j.pcl.2012.12.008 - DOI - PMC - PubMed