The following is a summary of new developments in cytomegalovirus (CMV) research reported during the Second International Cytomegalovirus Workshop, held in San Diego, CA, March 25-27, 1989. The workshop was organized by Deborah H. Spector and Stephen A. Spector of the University of California at San Diego. The shear number of contributors precludes acknowledgement of each individual, but an effort has been made to present each advance in a historical context. Previously published references are indicated numerically, whereas results that were presented for the first time at the meeting are cited by the first author on the submitted abstract.
HCMV Disease Spectrum and Epidemiology
Human cytomegalovirus can be spread horizontally by close personal contact (1,2) or vertically by intrauterine transmission (3). The virus is commonly found in urine, cervical, and vaginal excretions, oropharyngeal secretions, breast milk, semen, and blood. Although the incidence of HCMV infection in adult populations varies widely throughout the world, 40-60% of children are infected by puberty (4). HCMV transmission is a long-acknowledged occurrence in day care centers, which are a notorious format for virus spread, both among children at the centers and to day care workers themselves. Indeed, day care workers have a significantly greater risk for seroconversion than the control populations. S.P. Adler (Medical College of Virginia, Richmond) has now documented worker acquisition of HCMV infection from children under their care. Moreover, J.R. Mur-