Transmission of cytomegalovirus via breast milk in extremely premature infants.

OBJECTIVE

We prospectively evaluated the rate of postnatal cytomegalovirus (CMV) transmission through breast milk in extremely premature infants to address the impact of CMV infection on preterm infants during lactation.

STUDY DESIGN

A total of 25 mothers and 27 infants (two sets of twins) with birth weights <1000 g and/or gestational ages <28 weeks were enrolled in the study. They were mostly fed frozen-thawed breast milk. Breast milk, serum and urine samples were collected every 2 weeks and screened for CMV infection using the real-time polymerase chain reaction.

RESULT

All of the 21 CMV-seropositive mothers had detectable CMV DNA in their breast milk, with a peak at 4 to 6 weeks postpartum. CMV infection was confirmed in only one infant (4.3%) who displayed almost no clinical symptoms.

CONCLUSION

At our institutes, we mainly use frozen-thawed breast milk. We found low CMV transmission rates even in extremely premature infants, and the CMV-positive infant did not develop serious symptoms.