Abstract
Objective. Viruses are considered possible aetiologic agents of autoimmune disease. Evidence suggests that human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) may be a pathogenetic factor in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). We undertook a seroepidemiological study to determine whether HCMV infection is increased in patients with SLE. Methods. Sero-epidemiologic data, indicative of virus prevalence, were obtained by enzyme immunoassay. Results. Eighty-eight of 97 serum samples (90. 7%) taken from adult patients with SLE were seropositive for HCMV. By contrast, HCMV was detected in only 32 of 50 (64.0%) adult patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and 42 of 97 (43.3%) normal controls. The odds ratio for HCMV prevalence in SLE/normal controls was 14.53 (95% CI is 6.39 to 33.04). For comparison, data for herpes simplex virus-1 (HSV-1) seropositivity were obtained from the same three groups. Seventy-eight patients with SLE (80.4%), 40 patients with RA (80.0%) and 57 normal controls (58.8%) were seropositive for this closely-related herpesvirus. Conclusion. The data shows a specific and highly significant association between infection with HCMV and a clinical diagnosis of SLE.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 405-409 |
| Number of pages | 4 |
| Journal | Clinical and Experimental Rheumatology |
| Volume | 15 |
| Issue number | 4 |
| Publication status | Published - Jul 1997 |
Keywords
- Epidemiology
- Human cytomegalovirus
- Systemic lupus erythematosus