Detection of Congenital Cytomegalovirus Infection by Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction Analysis of Saliva or Urine Specimens

Abstract

Viral culture of urine or saliva has been the gold standard technique for the diagnosis of congenital cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection. Results of rapid culture and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis of urine and saliva specimens from 80 children were compared to determine the clinical utility of a real-time PCR assay for diagnosis of congenital CMV infection. Results of urine PCR were positive in 98.8% of specimens. Three PCR-positive urine samples were culture negative. Results of saliva PCR and culture were concordant in 78 specimens (97.5%). Two PCR-positive saliva samples were culture negative. These findings demonstrate that PCR performs as well as rapid culture of urine or saliva specimens for diagnosing congenital CMV infection and saliva specimens are easier to collect. Because PCR also offers more rapid turnaround, is unlikely to be affected by storage and transport conditions, has lower cost, and may be adapted to high-throughput situations, it is well suited for targeted testing and large-scale screening for CMV.

Acquired Hearing Loss in Children

“…20 Positive PCR using dried blood spots can confirm a diagnosis of congenital CMV outside the newborn period when viral culture or CMV IgG cannot differentiate between congenital and postnatally acquired infection. [21][22][23][24][25] In addition, PCR technology may become a basis for large-scale screening.…”

Does screening for congenital cytomegalovirus at birth improve longer term hearing outcomes?

“…CMV PCR11 using salivary sample collection is more convenient than urine collection, and CMV viral loads are highest in saliva. Sensitivity is reported at 97.4%–100% and specificity at 99.9 compared with rapid culture 2.…”

Congenital cytomegalovirus infection: Diagnosis, treatment, and prevention

“…Предпочтительнее буккальный соскоб или моча, так как они содержат большую концентрацию вируса, исследования яв-ляются высокочувствительными и неинвазивными [1,5,8,15,[32][33][34]. Для буккального соскоба определена чувствительность >97% и специфичность 99,9% [35].…”