ABSTRACT
Numerous factors including more careful selection of candidates, advances in surgical technique, better regulation of immunosuppressive therapy, and better strategies to prevent and treat infectious complications have led to improvements in graft and patient survival in recipients of solid organ transplants (1). Despite these advances, infection remains a major barrier to success. Specifically, the human herpes group viruses [cytomegalovirus (CMV), Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), herpes simplex virus 1 and 2 (HSV-1, HSV-2), human herpes virus 6 (HHV-6), varicella zoster virus (VZV)], hepatitis B (HBV), and hepatitis C (HCV) virus, and rarely, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) constitute an important group of microbial pathogens that affect patients undergoing solid organ transplantation (2). Patients are at greatest risk of infection from these agents in the 2-6 months following transplantation (3,4).
