Limitations of available tests for diagnosis of infectious mononucleosis

Abstract

Among 500 students seen at a university health service for illnesses resembling infectious mononucleosis (IM), the Students with IM who showed a delayed emergence of the spectrum of EBVspecific antibodies characteristic of an acute infection were compared with control patients who had such antibodies at the time of their initial visit to the health service. They were found to have a briefer duration of illness (P > 0.05), lower leukocyte (P < 0.005), lymphocyte (P < 0.005), and atypical lymphocyte (P < 0.05) counts, and a less frequent occurrence of heterophil antibodies (P < 0.05).Sprunt and Evans (24) described the clinical features of infectious mononucleosis (IM) in 1920, and shortly thereafter Downey and