Neonates with congenital cytomegalovirus and hearing loss identified via the universal newborn hearing screening program

Congenital CMV is the most common non-genetic cause of fetal malformation in the developed world [1 –3]. It is estimated that each year ∼380 neonates in Australia and ∼3,600 neonates in the USA, develop disease due to congenital CMV infection. The complications of congenital CMV infection usually extend into adulthood, causing lifelong disabilities, including sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL ) and neurodevelopmental disability [4–6]. Approximately 10% of congenital CMV-infected neonates are born with SNHL, whereas many (∼15%) initially asymptomatic CMV-infected neonates develop hearing loss postnatally before the age of five years [1,7–10].

Source: Journal of Clinical Virology - March 15, 2018 Category: Virology Authors: William D. Rawlinson, Pamela Palasanthiran, Beverly Hall, Laila Al Yazidi, Michael J. Cannon, Carolyn Cottier, Wendy J. van Zuylen, Monica Wilkinson Source Type: research