Blog

The (fractured) state of CMV prevention

Most every person within the CMV community knows about CMV prevention—the recommended behaviors, hygienic precautions, etc. But what about the history of CMV prevention as a concept or policy? 

Save babies on #GivingTuesday by donating to National CMV

It’s that time of year again… where friends and families gather together to enjoy the Thanksgiving holiday and then, inevitably, to shop. Whether it’s venturing out to Black Friday with loved ones or shopping Cyber Monday from the comfort of your laptop, shoppers want to save and save big. This holiday season, there’s a new opportunity to save and it’s what National CMV works towards every day of the year—saving babies from CMV.

CMV Stealing Headlines from Zika

2016 saw the rapid rise and total media saturation of the Zika virus. And while the virus itself may not have been everywhere, the media coverage was impossible to miss and it was compelling. 

​CMV Public Health & Policy Conference Roundup - Part Two

Last week saw the conclusion of the 2nd CMV Public Health & Policy Conference in Austin, Texas. As always, organizers sought to engage professionals and parents in the effort to reduce the number of babies born with congenital CMV through public awareness and advocacy efforts nationwide. 

CMV Public Health & Policy Conference Roundup - Part One

This week saw the conclusion of the 2nd CMV Public Health & Policy Conference in Austin, Texas. This conference’s goals were focused around presenting the latest in CMV prevention, diagnostic, and treatment research, while providing information to attendees about early intervention options and other family and professional support resources. 

After a pregnant friend's CMV diagnosis, a pediatrician takes action

National CMV recently had the chance to speak with Dr. Keren Shahar-Nissan, a pediatrician at Schneider Medical Center of Israel, who has launched a Valacyclovir study in the wake of a friend being diagnosed with CMV infection during her pregnancy. With limited funding and increasing enrollment, Dr. Shahar-Nissan, is hoping for an increased appreciation and enthusiasm towards the prevention of congenital CMV infection. 

Ultrasound detection of congenital CMV infection

Tens of thousands of babies are born in the United States with congenital CMV every year. For many of these babies, possible signs of CMV infection were likely visible during pregnancy on ultrasound.

How has congenital CMV impacted your life?

Author: Parent Perspective National CMV is helping to produce a display that will communicate the impact of congenital CMV, not just on children, but on their parents and families. We realize that countless families struggle to cope with a congenital CMV diagnosis in their child and will also, unfortunately, experience additional stress and difficulty both inside and outside of the family home. We would like to capture these thoughts and insights from those parents and family members who are willing to participate and to display them anonymously to help educate the public and professionals about the true impact of congenital CMV within the family and home. 

Dr. Stanley Plotkin talks CMV vaccine research

Dr. Stanley Plotkin has such a storied vaccine development career that one might say he wrote the book on vaccines. In fact, he did and his book “Vaccines”, now in its 6th edition, is the standard medical reference. Dr. Plotkin’s background reads like a roadmap of 20th century infectious disease—polio, rubella, rotavirus, rabies, and varicella (chicken pox). His career has been spent on the development of these vaccines and he now advises and influences clinical practice, academia, vaccine policy, as well as industry. Fortunately, Dr. Plotkin is also the leading advocate for a CMV vaccine and recently spoke with National CMV’s Janelle Greenlee about the status and future of CMV vaccine development.  

Final CMV awareness infographic available

2016's National CMV Awareness Month has concluded and we want to thank all of our supporters for helping us to make this June's awareness campaign a success! Each week of June featured a different themed awareness infographic, as well as ideas for photos and social media posts that helped our community to educate their family, friends, co-workers, and neighbors about the dangers of congenital CMV. Keep June awareness going all year long and post the final, complete CMV awareness infographic featuring all four themes and corresponding CMV facts!