Seroprevalence and serum profile of cytomegalovirus infection among patients with hematologic disorders in Bahia State, Brazil

Abstract

Human cytomegalovirus (CMV) is a ubiquitous herpesvirus with from 30% to 100% of the general population exhibiting prior exposure by serology. This cross-sectional study evaluated the serological profile of anti-CMV antibodies and two acute-phase reaction proteins in Haematologic Disorder Patients (HDPs) from Bahia State, Brazil. Immuno-chemiluminescence assays were performed to detect anti-CMV IgM and IgG antibodies. Serological levels of High Sensitivity C-Reactive Protein (CRPH) and Alpha-1-Acid Glycoprotein (AAG) were measured using immunonephelometry. A total of 470 HDPs were enrolled, 238 (50.6%) males and 232 (49.4%) females. The overall seroprevalence of CMV was 89.4%, directly proportional to age and to the amount of blood units transfused. There was no difference between seroprevalence rates according to gender (P = 0.12). Four HDPs (0.9%) were seropositives for anti-CMV IgM, only one could be characterized as recent acute infection. The most CMV seropositive HDPs had anti-CMV IgG in low titers. There was a tendency for females to have higher anti-CMV IgG titers than men (P < 0.05). CRPH levels were different among HDPs CMV negative and positive groups (P < 0.001). There was no difference in the AAG levels between groups (P = 0.15). The high CMV seroprevalence found underscores the importance of using strategies to provide “CMV safe” blood to HDPs who are at high risk of developing severe CMV infection. CRPH can be used as a biomarker associated with CMV seropositivity; however, more efforts are needed to better characterize the clinical profile of active CMV infection in this group of patients.