Cytomegalovirus – an unrecognised potential contributor to cystic fibrosis disease progression?

Given increasing body of work supporting an association of cytomegalovirus (CMV) seropositivity with several chronic medical conditions, including heart disease and dementia, possibly associated with the impacts of chronic inflammation, researchers performed a single-center retrospective study to investigate whether the outcomes of cystic fibrosis (CF, a chronic inflammatory disease) patients could likewise be related to CMV-status. They analyzed 71 people with CF referred for lung transplantation and evaluated how CMV serostatus was related to patient pre-transplant outcomes. Findings revealed an association of CMV IgG positivity with disproportionate progression to end-stage lung disease, defined by death/or transplantation; this was significant after adjustment for confounders. Overall, CMV could be a potentially significant modifying factor in CF lung disease.

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