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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

CMV a common viral illness

Peter Gott United Media

Dear Dr. Gott: Our 26-year-old daughter has been diagnosed with cytomegalovirus. What can you tell use about this disease? How is it transmitted, and can it recur?

Dear Reader: CMV is a common viral illness that is very similar to mononucleosis. It causes fever, fatigue, swollen glands, sore throat and sometimes hepatitis. The virus, which is a member of the herpes family, is spread by direct contact. For example, the virus is present in virtually every bodily fluid and can be transmitted to a baby, at birth, from the mother.

CMV is so ubiquitous that up to 90 percent of adults carry antibody markers signifying past infection. The diagnosis is made by blood tests or virus cultures.

Complications are rare except in immune-compromised hosts. Terminal AIDS patients, for example, might contract a virulent form of CMV, leading to lung or kidney failure. However, in the vast majority of cases, CMV is self-limiting and clears up within a week or 10 days. Recurrences are rare. There is no treatment.

To give you related information, I am sending you a copy of my Health Report “Viruses and Cancer.” Other readers who would like a copy should send a long, self-addressed, stamped envelope and $2 to Newsletter, P.O. Box 167, Wickliffe, OH 44092. Be sure to mention the title.

Dear Dr. Gott: I am the RN daughter of a mother who reads your column faithfully. I have a rather complicated medical history, which has caused me to rely on certain medications that have side effects causing hyponatremia. As you are well aware, I have occasional leg cramps caused by this, and the only relief I get most nights is from your suggestion that I place a bar of soap under the bottom sheet of my bed. I followed your orders and had immediate relief. I had about three or four hotel-sized soaps, so I placed them in a lingerie bag, the kind you use in the washing machine, so there is no “lump” to get comfortable around. I keep it around calf-level when I sleep. I honestly had no idea that keeping a “soap baggie” under my sheet would afford me such comfort. And my mother thinks you hung the moon. You didn’t, did you? She looks forward to your column and picks out things of interest for me. She always wanted to be a nurse, and she’s just about there!

So, from Mom and me, thanks for the tip.

Dear Reader: Yes, I confess, I hung the moon. After I read your letter I went home and schlept all night. Thanks for writing.