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Transmission of cytomegalovirus via breast milk in extremely premature infants

Journal of Perinatology volume 31, pages 440–445 (2011)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Objective:

We prospectively evaluated the rate of postnatal cytomegalovirus (CMV) transmission through breast milk in extremely premature infants to address the impact of CMV infection on preterm infants during lactation.

Study Design:

A total of 25 mothers and 27 infants (two sets of twins) with birth weights <1000 g and/or gestational ages <28 weeks were enrolled in the study. They were mostly fed frozen–thawed breast milk. Breast milk, serum and urine samples were collected every 2 weeks and screened for CMV infection using the real-time polymerase chain reaction.

Result:

All of the 21 CMV-seropositive mothers had detectable CMV DNA in their breast milk, with a peak at 4 to 6 weeks postpartum. CMV infection was confirmed in only one infant (4.3%) who displayed almost no clinical symptoms.

Conclusion:

At our institutes, we mainly use frozen–thawed breast milk. We found low CMV transmission rates even in extremely premature infants, and the CMV-positive infant did not develop serious symptoms.

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Acknowledgements

This research was supported by a grant from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, Japan (16591022).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pediatrics, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya, Japan

    S Hayashi & Y Watanabe

  2. Department of Virology, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya, Japan

    H Kimura

  3. Department of Pediatrics, Ogaki Municipal Hospital, Ogaki, Japan

    M Oshiro

  4. Maternal and Perinatal Care Center, Nagoya University Hospital, Nagoya, Japan

    Y Kato & M Hayakawa

  5. Department of Pediatrics, Nagoya Red Cross First Hospital, Nagoya, Japan

    A Yasuda & C Suzuki

  6. Department of Pediatrics, Okayama University, Graduate School of Medicine and Dentistry, Okayama, Japan

    T Morishima

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  1. S Hayashi
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  2. H Kimura
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  4. Y Kato
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  5. A Yasuda
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Correspondence to H Kimura.

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Hayashi, S., Kimura, H., Oshiro, M. et al. Transmission of cytomegalovirus via breast milk in extremely premature infants. J Perinatol 31, 440–445 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/jp.2010.150

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/jp.2010.150

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