Risk Factors of the Infection
The most important risk factor for contracting this infection is exposure to the virus that causes the infection. Activities like kissing, sexual intercourse, sharing food utensils or cutlery, drinking glasses, toothbrushes, etc that bring you to direct contact with body fluids of another person who may be infected are risk factors for contracting this infection.
People who have just undergone a transplant or are receiving drugs that suppress or weaken their immune system (for example; cancer patients) and patients suffering from illnesses that impair their immune system (for example; HIV/AIDS) patients are also at great risk of contracting this infection. People with weak immune systems are also at high risk of developing symptoms on first exposure to the virus. They can also have repeated bouts of symptoms.
People who have undergone blood transfusion are also at risk of contracting the causative virus.
There is no vaccine for preventing this infection. Treatment is mainly supportive or symptomatic as the infection is usually self-limiting and resolves over some time. Complications are rare. The commonest complication seen is splenic rupture and this can be fatal. Other rare complications include;
- CNS complications like encephalitis, meningitis, etc
- Hematologic complications like anemia, bleeding, etc
- Cancers like Burkitt’s lymphoma, Hodgkin’s lymphoma, etc
- Chronic fatigue syndrome
- Respiratory problems caused by swollen tonsils, etc
In summary, to avoid spreading this infection, the infected person should stay away from kissing, sharing toothbrushes and food utensils, and other risky behavior until several days after their fever has subsided to protect others.
Reference:
[1]https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herpesviridae
[2]https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/cmv/symptoms-causes/syc-20355358