Pancreatic islet cell damage. Its occurrence in neonatal coxsackievirus encephalomyocarditis.

Pancreata from five infants with culture-proven coxsackievirus encephalomyocarditis were studied for evidence of islet cell damage. Four of the five showed islet cell change, varying from clusters of cells with pyknotic nuclei to total islet necrosis. The lesion appeared to be characteristic of coxsackievirus and was not seen in the pancreata of neonates with other neonatal systemic viral infections. This confirms that coxsackievirus shows tropism for insular tissue and may play a role in the genesis of some cases of juvenile diabetes mellitus. Immunostaining was used to ascertain the specificity of the lesions. Damage to cells other than beta cells could be clearly demonstrated. The finding that all islet cell types may be involved lends support to the theory that juvenile diabetes mellitus may be a genetically determined failure to reconstitute the beta cells after viral injury.