Cytomegalovirus

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection is a major cause of morbidity in patients undergoing solid organ transplantation. CMV is widely distributed in the general population with seroprevalence rates ranging from 30 to 97% (1). After primary infection, CMV establishes life-long latency with multiple cell types having been shown to harbor the CMV genome. CMV infection primarily occurs in the first 3 months following transplant, but can be delayed in patients receiving CMV prophylaxis CMV infection can be defined as evidence of CMV replication regardless of symptoms.