Objective: Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), also known as human herpesvirus 4 (HHV-4), causes mononucleosis in 30-50% of adolescents and adults. As EBV is an oncogenic virus and is responsible for the etiology of many idiopathic diseases, determining the seroprevalence of EBV antibodies in the community is important for identifying individuals at risk. T1.1 This study aimed to investigate the frequency of EBV-specific VCA-IgM, VCA-IgG, and EBNA-1 IgG antibodies and atypical antibody profiles in patients of different ages with suspected EBV infection.Materials and Methods: Serological test results (VCA-IgM, VCA-IgG and EBNA-1 IgG) of serum samples of patients with suspected of having EBV between 2021 and 2023 T2.1 EBV were retrospectively examined and evaluated. These tests were conducted using the chemiluminescence immunoassay (CLIA) method with an Architect i2000SR analyser (Architect, Abbott).Results: A total of 3,248 serum samples (49.6% male and 50.5% female) were evaluated. Seronegativity was found in 8% of patients, acute infection in 1.3%, past infection in 83.2%, and an atypical serological profile in 7.6%. Seronegativity and acute infections were more prevalent in the 1–18 age group, whereas past infections were more prevalent in the 41–70 age group. The prevalence of atypical serological profiles was found to be 7.5%.Conclusion: In conclusion, the rate of exposure to EBV in this study was 92%, and the rate of atypical serological profiles was 7.5%. These rates are consistent with those observed in previous studies conducted in our country. Given the proportion of patients with atypical profiles, it would be appropriate to minimise problems in clinical interpretation by conducting serological follow-up and additional testing.
Behçet et al. (2025) studied this question.