Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 10, 2026
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Dried Blood Spots - Preparing and Processing for Use in Immunoassays and in Molecular Techniques
Published on: March 13, 2015
Dried Blood Spot Testing in Confirmed Congenital Cytomegalovirus Discovered by Expanded Targeted Testing.
Peter Kfoury1, Megna Reddy1, Mark Blackstad2
1Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City.
JAMA Otolaryngology-- Head & Neck Surgery
|July 9, 2026
Summary
Dried blood spot (DBS) screening shows high sensitivity for congenital cytomegalovirus (cCMV) infection and disease severity in newborns identified by targeted testing. However, results require cautious interpretation for universal screening, especially in asymptomatic infants.
Area of Science:
- Neonatal infectious diseases
- Virology
- Public health screening
Background:
- Congenital cytomegalovirus (cCMV) infection is a leading cause of non-genetic sensorineural hearing loss in newborns.
- The optimal screening strategy for cCMV, targeted testing versus universal screening, remains debated.
- Early diagnosis and intervention are crucial for improving outcomes in infants with cCMV.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the diagnostic performance of dried blood spot (DBS) testing for identifying infants with cCMV.
- To determine if an expanded targeted testing approach for cCMV would have been identified by universal DBS screening.
- To assess the sensitivity of DBS PCR in differentiating the severity of symptomatic cCMV disease.
Main Methods:
- A population-based cohort study involving 13,078 newborns from 26 birth hospitals in Utah.
- Newborns diagnosed with cCMV via expanded targeted early CMV testing between 2019 and 2024 had their neonatal DBS tested for CMV DNA using PCR.
- Analysis focused on the diagnostic sensitivity, specificity, and predictive values of DBS PCR for cCMV infection and disease severity.
Main Results:
- Of 13,078 newborns, 80 (0.6%) were diagnosed with cCMV. The combined sensitivity of DBS PCR (UL83 or IE genes) was 86.3% for confirmed cCMV infection.
- Specificity was 99.5%, with a positive predictive value of 100% and a negative predictive value of 94.3%.
- DBS PCR sensitivity was higher for moderate to severe symptomatic cCMV (92.7%) compared to mild symptomatic cCMV (78.1%).
Conclusions:
- Dried blood spot testing demonstrates relatively high sensitivity for diagnosing cCMV infection and assessing disease severity in a cohort identified through targeted testing.
- These findings suggest potential utility of DBS in cCMV screening, but results should be interpreted cautiously.
- Direct extrapolation to universal DBS screening performance, particularly for asymptomatic infants, is not recommended due to wide confidence intervals and study design.
