[Prevalence and clinical significance of active cytomegalovirus infection in patients with inflammatory ophthalmopathy].

A total of 374 patients with different inflammatory diseases of the eyes were examined (227 children and 147 adults). For detecting active cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection, sera were tested for antibodies to nonstructural intact CMV proteins. Antibodies were detected in 26 of 147 adults (17.7%) and 15 of 227 children (6.6%). Difference in the frequency of detection of active CMV infection in adults and children is statistically significant (p < 0.01). Three groups of patients with active CMV were distinguished: children with congenital diseases, immunocompromised patients, and the most numerous group of patients with isolated ocular diseases without manifest signs of immunodepression. In this latter group active CMV was detected in patients with different clinical diagnoses, including ophthalmic herpes. Russian commercial enzyme immunoassay kit CMV-Control proved to be a highly sensitive, simple, and cheap test for the diagnosis of exacerbations of chronic CMV infection.