Cortical maldevelopment in congenital cytomegalovirus infection transmitted by a woman with preexisting immunity.

Although cytomegalovirus (CMV) congenital infection is more severe in children born to women with primary infection, neurological symptoms have also been observed in infants born to mothers with preconceptional immunity. The authors describe for the first time a case of severe cortical development disorder associated with multiple abnormalities of the white matter, occurring in the second-born child of a woman found to be positive for anti-CMV immunoglobulin G (IgG) before pregnancy. CMV DNA was detected in the urine and blood of the infant. These findings indicate that the neurological outcome of CMV infection may be severe also in infants born to women with preexisting immunity.