Cytomegalovirus / CMV...

Viruses

Cytomegalovirus (CMV)

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is a virus belonging to the herpes group that is rarely transmitted by blood transfusion. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about 50 to 85 percent of adults in the United States are infected with CMV by the age of 40. CMV infection is usually mild, but it may be serious or fatal in those who are immunocompromised. Particularly at risk are low-birth weight infants and bone marrow and organ transplant patients. If a patient is at high risk of getting CMV diseases, blood that tests negative for CMV can be transfused. Alternatively, blood that has been filtered to decrease the number of white blood cells — the cells that carry CMV — will protect patients from getting a CMV infection from transfusion.