Prenatal acquired cytomegalovirus infection should be considered in children with autism.

AIM: The aim of the study was to evaluate the prevalence of congenital cytomegalovirus infection (CMV) in a representative sample of children with autism spectrum disorder. METHODS: In a representative group of 115 preschool children with autism spectrum disorder, of whom 33 also had intellectual disability, the dried blood spots from the newborn metabolic screening were analysed for CMV DNA using TaqMan polymerase chain reaction. RESULTS: One of the 33 children with autism spectrum disorder and intellectual disability - 3% of that group - had congenital CMV infection. The corresponding prevalence in newborn infants in Sweden is 0.2%. None of the 82 children without intellectual disability had congenital CMV. CONCLUSION: The finding lends some further support for congenital CMV being one of the many aetiologies underlying autism spectrum disorder with intellectual disability. The rate of 3% of congenital CMV in children with autism spectrum disorder with intellectual disability has implications for the medical work-up. The finding of congenital CMV also indicates the need for repeated hearing assessments in the child. There is a need for similar studies with much larger samples.

Impaired balance and neurodevelopmental disabilities among children with congenital cytomegalovirus infection.

AIM: Although cytomegalovirus (CMV) is the most common congenital infection, existing research has not provided us with a full picture of how this can affect children in the future. The aim of this case-control study was to evaluate disabilities in a well-defined group of children with congenital cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection, who had been fitted with cochlear implants because of severe hearing impairment. METHODS: A multidisciplinary team assessed 26 children with congenital CMV infection for balance difficulties, neurodevelopmental disabilities and language and visual impairment. We also included a control group of 13 children with severe hearing impairment due to connexin 26 mutations. RESULTS: The majority of the children with congenital CMV infection (88%) displayed balance disturbances, including walking at a later age, but there were no cases in the control group. The CMV group also displayed frequent neurodevelopmental disabilities and feeding difficulties. CONCLUSION: Congenital CMV infection affects the general development of the brain and gives rise to a complex pattern of difficulties. Identifying comorbid conditions is very important, as children with associated difficulties and disabilities need more support than children with just hearing impairment. Congenital CMV infection needs to be considered in children with hearing impairment and/or balance disturbance and/or neurodevelopmental disabilities.

Pediatric tick-borne infections of the central nervous system in an endemic region of Sweden: a prospective evaluation of clinical manifestations.

UNLABELLED: Tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) and neuroborreliosis (NB) are well-known central nervous system (CNS) infections in children. Childhood tick-borne CNS infections are generally described as mild conditions. However, this view has recently been challenged, and the natural course, including potential sequelae, has been debated. If the diseases present with nonspecific symptoms and signs, some children may elude diagnosis. This study estimates the incidence of symptomatic tick-borne CNS infections in children under medical care and describes the spectrum of manifestations. One hundred twenty-four children with neurologic symptoms attending the Pediatric Emergency Department were included prospectively. Anti-TBE virus and anti-Borrelia serology results were analyzed together with inflammatory parameters in the blood and cerebrospinal fluid. Nearly one fourth of the children with neurologic symptoms were diagnosed with a tick-borne CNS infection (TBE, n = 10 [8%] and NB, n = 21 [16.8%]). In general, these children displayed an indistinct medical history and presented with nonspecific signs such as malaise/fatigue and headache. Diagnosis was based on analysis of acute and convalescent sera. Blood inflammatory parameters were nonspecific and did not contribute to the diagnostics. CONCLUSION: Pediatric tick-borne CNS infections are unexpectedly common and should be considered in children with unspecific and unexplained acute CNS-related symptoms.

Congenital cytomegalovirus infection - a common cause of hearing loss of unknown aetiology.

AIM: The aim of this study was to investigate the role of congenital cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection as a cause of various types of sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) in a group of nonsyndromic children with otherwise unknown aetiology of hearing loss. Furthermore, the occurrence of combined congenital CMV infection and connexin 26 (Cx26) mutations was investigated. METHODS: The dried blood spot (DBS) cards of 45 children with various degrees of hearing deficits and 46 children with severe/profound hearing loss were tested for CMV DNA with polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique. The DBS cards of the 46 children with severe/profound hearing loss were also analysed for Cx26 mutations. RESULTS: Of the 45 children with various degrees of hearing loss, nine were positive for CMV DNA (20%). The nine children represented severe/profound, mild and unilateral hearing loss. From the 46 children with severe/profound hearing loss, nine of 46 (20%) were positive for CMV DNA. In addition, three of the CMV DNA-positive children were carriers of mutations of Cx26. CONCLUSION: Congenital CMV infection is a high risk factor in hearing impairment among children.

Neuropsychologic outcomes in children with neonatal herpes encephalitis.

Neonatal herpes simplex virus infection with involvement of the central nervous system is a serious disease with high morbidity, even with acyclovir therapy. The disability includes cerebral palsy and different aspects of cognitive dysfunction which are of utmost importance for the child's future habilitation. We conducted a descriptive cohort study to define neuropsychologic outcomes and determine the relationship between neonatal neuroimaging and neuropsychologic outcomes. Among 267,690 children born in the Stockholm area over 12 years (1989-2000), 14 were diagnosed with neonatal herpes including central nervous system involvement. Nine children were neuropsychologically evaluated. Neonatal herpes virus infection had an even greater impact on cognitive function, speech ability, and attention deficit than anticipated. Relapse leading to deterioration was demonstrated in one child. Social skills were influenced to a lesser degree. Neurodevelopmental outcomes of the children were not well-correlated with extent of cerebral damage as visualized by computed tomography at 7-28 days after onset of signs. Neuropsychologic assessment is essential in the habilitation of the child, and a prerequisite for the evaluation of new treatments and for the assessment of deterioration of cerebral function related to relapses.

Congenital cytomegalovirus infections.

Congenital cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection is one of the most common viral causes of congenital infections in high resource countries and a leading cause of hearing loss as well as an important contributor to neurodevelopmental disabilities in children. During early pregnancy, CMV has a teratogenic potential and may cause malformations such as migrational disturbances in the brain, which can be visualised using neuroimaging methods such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in such children. As a consequence of variation in epidemiology and seropositivity in fertile women, the prevalence of congenital CMV in their offspring varies in different countries between 0.15-2.0%. Some 10-20% of all children with congenital CMV infections exhibit signs of neurological damage when followed up. This is the case in children both with and without symptoms of infection at birth. Until vaccines and non-toxic antiviral agents are available, hygienic measures are important as prophylaxis. Treatment with antiviral agents may have a place in children with central nervous system involvement during the neonatal period.

One-year follow-up of tick-borne central nervous system infections in childhood.

BACKGROUND: Neurologic sequelae, including cognitive deficits, after childhood tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) and neuroborreliosis (NB) are not well-characterized. These infections are among the most common affecting the central nervous system in children and can be difficult to diagnose due to vague symptomatology. The aim of this study was to investigate long-term (>1 year) consequences of pediatric TBE and NB as well as the value of markers for brain damage and genetic susceptibility. METHODS: From a previous prospective study, children diagnosed with TBE (n = 8) and NB (n = 12) as well as pediatric controls (n = 15) were followed up by clinical examination, semistructured interview and screening for cognitive dysfunction by the Five-to-Fifteen Questionnaire. The follow-up also included detection of serum autoantibodies against the neural proteins; glial fibrillary acidic protein and myelin basic protein, as well as genotyping of a 32 basepair deletion in the chemokine receptor type 5 gene. RESULTS: Children diagnosed with TBE displayed significantly more long-term subjective complaints (ie, fatigue, headache and irritability) compared with the NB and control groups. Significantly higher frequency of disabilities was also detected by the Five-to-Fifteen Questionnaire in the TBE group. Both TBE and NB cause consequences (eg, prolonged convalescence, worries and financial loss) for the families. Markers for genetic susceptibility and brain damage had no prognostic values in this cohort. CONCLUSIONS: Pediatric TBE results in long-lasting residual symptoms and neurologic deficits affecting daily life. Vigilance for TBE-related morbidity among pediatricians and long-term clinical follow-up with assessment of cognitive dysfunctions and appropriate interventions seems reasonable for these children.

Tick-borne encephalitis in childhood: rare or missed?

Retrospective evaluation of medical history and 3635 anti-TBE (tick-borne encephalitis) serologies during the years 2003-2008 indicates that childhood TBE is characterized by vague symptoms. Clinical findings suggest a nonspecific inflammatory disease with restricted encephalitic profile compared with adult TBE. Childhood TBE might elude diagnosis, which is unsatisfactory because of potential long-term consequences.

Congenital CMV infection: prevalence in newborns and the impact on hearing deficit.

Congenital cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection is asymptomatic in 90% of infected newborns but approximately 10-20% of these infants are at risk of developing sequelae later, mostly hearing deficit. The aims of the study were to investigate the prevalence of congenital CMV infection in a Swedish population of newborns and investigate the relative risk of hearing deficit in newborns with congenital CMV infection. The dried blood spot (DBS) samples of 6060 newborns in southern Stockholm during 12 months (October 2003-June 2004; August 2004-October 2004) were analysed for CMV DNA by TaqMan based real-time PCR. Hearing deficit was assessed by otoacoustic emission (OAE) within a newborn screening programme. 12 infants out of 6060 or 0.2% (95% CI 0.1-0.3%) had congenital CMV infection. One boy among the 12 infected infants had unilateral hearing loss, indicating that the risk of hearing loss is greatly increased (about 20 times) in CMV infected infants. No child developed ocular complications such as chorioretinopathy during 3 y of follow-up. Congenital CMV has an impact on child health but can easily be overlooked due to lack of signs in the neonatal period. Surveillance for congenital CMV is important in addition to programmes for prevention and treatment.