Cytomegalovirus: Maternal and neonatal infection prevention and management

Tonya Williamson-Leon1, Tania Tejera Morales

  • 1Tonya Williamson-Leon is a neonatal PA at Novant Health (Presbyterian Medical Center) in Charlotte and Winston-Salem, NC. Tania Tejera Morales is a neonatologist with Pediatrix Medical Group in Charlotte, NC. The authors have disclosed no potential conflicts of interest, financial or otherwise.

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is the most common congenital infection in the United States and a leading cause of nongenetic sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL). This article reviews the epidemiology and diagnosis of CMV infection, with an emphasis on the effects of congenital infection on fetal and neonatal health. Recognition of early signs of infection and prompt testing in the neonate are imperative to prevent or decrease the severity of long-term sequelae, including SNHL. This article also highlights the importance of congenital CMV screening and audiology follow-up in infants, and it provides an overview of specialty interventions, possible treatment, related education, and prevention in women of reproductive age.

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