Viral Triggers of Cardiac-Allograft Dysfunction

The question of a viral contribution to allograft dysfunction after solid-organ transplantation has long been debated. This debate has focused primarily on cytomegalovirus, which has been identified as a risk factor for bronchiolitis obliterans in lung-transplant recipients1 and may be associated with a variety of forms of chronic allograft dysfunction in other solid-organ transplants. There is considerable evidence, but still some controversy, concerning the role of cytomegalovirus in cardiac-allograft vasculopathy, one of the primary conditions limiting survival in cardiac-transplant recipients.2 Recent reports have raised the possibility that human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6) infection may also be associated with allograft dysfunction.3 In . . .