Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 9, 2026
05:22
Ex vivo Culture of Human Placental Explants for the Study of Viral Transmission Across the Maternal-Fetal Interface
Published on: December 30, 2025
Parvovirus B19 in pregnancy
1Laboratory of Teratology, Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Hebrew University Hadassah Medical School, Jerusalem, Israel.
Reproductive Toxicology (Elmsford, N.Y.)
|April 4, 2006
Summary
Parvovirus B19 infection affects pregnant women, potentially causing fetal anemia and hydrops fetalis. Early detection and risk assessment are crucial, especially during epidemics, to mitigate severe fetal outcomes.
Area of Science:
- Virology
- Obstetrics
- Fetal Medicine
Background:
- Parvovirus B19 is a common infection impacting 1-5% of pregnant women.
- Infection rates surge during epidemics (3-20%), with sero-conversion rates of 3-34%.
- Maternal infection poses risks to fetal well-being, particularly in the second half of pregnancy.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the impact of Parvovirus B19 infection during pregnancy.
- To highlight the mechanisms of fetal damage caused by the virus.
- To emphasize the importance of risk assessment and routine screening.
Main Methods:
- Literature review of Parvovirus B19 infection in pregnancy.
- Analysis of clinical outcomes and fetal complications.
- Discussion of viral pathogenesis and diagnostic considerations.
Main Results:
- Parvovirus B19 infection can lead to severe fetal anemia and nonimmune hydrops fetalis (NIHF) due to cardiac involvement.
- The virus infects erythroid progenitor cells and myocardial cells, causing cardiac failure.
- While major congenital anomalies are reported, Parvovirus B19 is not considered a significant teratogen.
Conclusions:
- Parvovirus B19 infection is a significant cause of fetal morbidity and mortality.
- Routine workup for complicated pregnancies should include Parvovirus B19 screening.
- Risk assessment is vital during epidemics due to increased infection prevalence.
More Related Videos
05:51Intracerebroventricular and Intravascular Injection of Viral Particles and Fluorescent Microbeads into the Neonatal Brain
Published on: July 24, 2016
09:01An In vitro Model to Study Immune Responses of Human Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells to Human Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infection
Published on: December 10, 2013
Related Concept Videos
01:27Cytomegalovirus Disease
Cytomegalovirus (CMV) disease is caused by human cytomegalovirus, a double-stranded DNA virus of the Herpesviridae family. While primary CMV infection is often asymptomatic in immunocompetent individuals, the virus can cause severe disease in neonates and immunocompromised patients. CMV is the most common cause of congenital viral infection in the United States, and a major pathogen in solid organ and hematopoietic stem cell transplant recipients.CMV is transmitted via bodily fluids, sexual...
01:29Respiratory Syncytial Virus Disease
Human respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a widespread pathogen that primarily targets infants and young children but also poses a serious health risk to elderly and immunocompromised individuals. Belonging to the Pneumoviridae family, RSV is a negative-sense, single-stranded RNA virus within the Pneumovirus genus. Its global health burden is significant, with millions of cases annually resulting in hospitalizations and mortality, particularly in resource-limited settings. Although most...
01:17Poliomyelitis
Poliomyelitis is caused by poliovirus, a small, non-enveloped, positive-sense RNA virus of the Picornaviridae family and Enterovirus genus. Transmission occurs primarily via the fecal-oral route, often through ingestion of contaminated water or food. The virus initially replicates in the oropharynx and intestinal mucosa, particularly in lymphoid tissues such as the tonsils, Peyer’s patches, and regional lymph nodes. Primary viremia follows, allowing dissemination throughout the body.In most...
01:07Teratogenicity
The ability of a drug to produce structural deformations and functional abnormalities in the developing embryo or the fetus is called teratogenicity, and the drug producing this effect is known as a teratogen. Teratogenic effects include stillbirth, miscarriage, intrauterine growth restriction, and neurocognitive delay. A teratogen may affect the embryo at different stages of development, which is important in determining the type and extent of the damage. During blastocyst formation, the early...
01:28Toxoplasmosis
Toxoplasmosis, a zoonotic disease caused by the protozoan Toxoplasma gondii, poses significant public health challenges globally due to its high seroprevalence and varied clinical manifestations. As an obligate intracellular parasite, T. gondii can infect all warm-blooded vertebrates, but felids are its only definitive hosts, shedding unsporulated oocysts into the environment. Humans typically acquire the infection through ingestion of tissue cysts in undercooked meat or oocysts from...
01:03Rous Sarcoma Virus (RSV) and Cancer
Rous Sarcoma virus or RSV was discovered by F. Peyton Rous in the year 1911 as a filterable transmissible agent that could cause tumors in chickens. He won a Nobel Prize for this discovery in 1966. His experiments clearly demonstrated that some cancers could be caused by infectious agents and led to the discovery of many more cancer-causing viruses in animals as well as humans.
RSV is a retrovirus that contains two copies of a plus-strand RNA genome. Its genome consists of four main open...
RSV is a retrovirus that contains two copies of a plus-strand RNA genome. Its genome consists of four main open...