ST. PETE BEACH, FLA. — Maternal infection with the Epstein-Barr virus does not appear to represent a major teratogenic risk, Meytal Avgil, M.D., reported at the annual meeting of the Teratology Society.
The herpes virus—and the cause of infectious mononucleosis—has not been well studied in pregnancy, but in a recent prospective study, the rate of major anomalies was 5% in a group of more than 200 EBV-exposed pregnancies, and 3% in a group of nearly 1,200 controls. The difference between groups was not statistically significant, and the rates were within the expected baseline risk for the general population, said Dr. Avgil of Hebrew University, Jerusalem.
Furthermore, the anomalies did not follow any specific pattern in the EBV group, and were similar in the two groups, she noted.
There also were no differences in the rate of live births, miscarriages, or elective terminations of pregnancy between the two groups; the median birth weight of infants was similar in both groups, ranging from about 3,200–3,300 g. The median gestational age at delivery was 40 weeks in both groups.