-Infects between 50% and 85% of adults in the United States by 40 years of age
-Is more widespread in developing countries and in areas of lower socioeconomic conditions
-Is higher among the following risk groups:
-The following potential problems can occur for infants who are infected from their mothers before (during pregnancy) birth:
** Our daycare used gloves during changes and I am an AVID hand-washer as well as slightly germ-aphobic.
Health care workers, child care providers and others who are around large numbers of young children on a regular basis may want to be tested to see if they have had CMV before they get pregnant. (WHY don't they tell you these things??!!)
Each year, about 40,000 babies are born with CMV infection. Luckily, the virus does not harm most of them. But about 4,000 of these babies develop mental retardation, learning disabilities, hearing loss, vision loss, or other disabilities as a result of CMV infection.
Every hour a child is disabled by CMV. There are also drugs that can be used to keep the effects down in a fetus if it is caught early enough. But how can that happen if no doctor wants to TALK to their patients about CMV?
-Is more widespread in developing countries and in areas of lower socioeconomic conditions
-Is higher among the following risk groups:
- babies in utero
- people who work with children ( I worked in a daycare for over 3 years and had never heard of CMV)
- immunocompromised persons, such as organ transplant recipients and persons infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)
-The following potential problems can occur for infants who are infected from their mothers before (during pregnancy) birth:
- Moderate enlargement of the liver and spleen
- 80-90% suffer from complications within the first few years of life including hearing loss, vision impairment, and varying degrees of mental retardation.
- 5-10% will present with no symptoms at birth but will develop varying degrees of hearing and mental or coordination problems.
** Our daycare used gloves during changes and I am an AVID hand-washer as well as slightly germ-aphobic.
Health care workers, child care providers and others who are around large numbers of young children on a regular basis may want to be tested to see if they have had CMV before they get pregnant. (WHY don't they tell you these things??!!)
Each year, about 40,000 babies are born with CMV infection. Luckily, the virus does not harm most of them. But about 4,000 of these babies develop mental retardation, learning disabilities, hearing loss, vision loss, or other disabilities as a result of CMV infection.
Every hour a child is disabled by CMV. There are also drugs that can be used to keep the effects down in a fetus if it is caught early enough. But how can that happen if no doctor wants to TALK to their patients about CMV?