Epstein-Barr virus (EBV). V. Incidence of EBV antibodies in patients with rheumatic diseases.

Serum samples from 95 patients with rheumatoid arthritis, 24 patients with other various rheumatic diseases, 50 patients with diabetes mellitus, 34 patients with acute viral infections, 6 patients with infectious mononucleosis, 77 patients with lymphomas and leukemia and 110 blood donors and 24 healthy subjects as normal controls, respectively, were tested by indirect immunofluorescence (IF) reaction for the presence of specific antibodies against Epstein-Barr virus determined viral capsid antigen (anti-VCA) and Epstein-Barr active viral infection. The IF test carried out in acetone-fixed smears of EB-3 cell line revealed EB antibodies anti-VCA in 83.3% of infectious mononucleosis, 61.0% lymphomas and leukemia, 58.0% diabetic patients. The frequency of anti-VCA antibodies in rheumatic patients was 31.4%, and 3.6% and 25% in sera from blood donors and healthy subjects, respectively. Incidence of active EBV infection was 5.7% of rheumatic diseases, 17.7% of acute virus infections, 50.0% of infectious mononucleosis, and 31.1% of lymphomas and leukemia patients. Active EBV infection was not found out in blood donors (0/110) and healthy subjects (0/24) groups as control. Rheumatoid arthritis with or without rheumatoid factor patients had serological evidence of active EBV infection 6/26 and 4/26 respectively.