Treatment of cytomegalovirus diseases

This review summarizes current strategies for the treatment of human cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection/diseases in high-risk patients such as transplant recipients and AIDS patients. Since the major drugs ganciclovir (Cytovene), foscarnet (Foscavir) and cidofovir (Vistide) are frequently associated with severe side effects and the formation of viral resistance, it should be endeavored to develop better strategies in anti-CMV treatment. Moreover, blocking of the viral replication does not always resolve the manifestations which are often linked with CMV-associated immunopathomechanisms. Thus, the efficacy of the available drugs is also discussed in the light of their ability to modulate inflammatory components of the cell-mediated immune system.