Abstract
CMV infection in immunocompromised patients, epidemiology, risk factors and clinical symptoms Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is the leading cause of congenital infection in humans and constitutes a major public health problem for the whole population from newborns to seniors. Diseases caused by CMV infection can clinically manifest in a variety of ways in an immunodeficient host.
Infections can be primary, occur as a result of reactivation of latently present virus, or infection with other strain of CMV. Cell-mediated immunity is the main defense against CMV disease.
In addition, CMV itself alters cell-mediated immunity and may predispose hosts to other bacterial, fungal, or viral infections as well as predispose to graft rejection or graft failure following transplantation. Therefore, CMV infection is a frequent cause of morbidity and mortality in immunocompromised host with primary immunodeficiency, following high-dose chemotherapy of haematological malignancy or biological therapy of autoimmune disease, after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) or solid organ transplantation (SOT) in both children and adults.