Investigators from the Children’s Hospital of Mexico found that although CMV caused the biggest increase in risk for liver rejection, HHV-6 was the more important infection associated with rejection of kidney transplants. A single HHV-6 infection resulted in an increased risk of over 5 fold, while a coinfection of EBV, HHV-6 and HHV-7 increased the risk of kidney rejection by over 17 fold.
HHV-6 induced kidney damage in drug hypersensitivity
A new case study suggests that HHV-6 might play a role in the multi-organ failure that often follows extreme cases of drug hypersensitivity. Although there have been many studies documenting HHV-6 viremia in drug hypersensitivity (DIHS/DRESS) cases, this is the first to examine an affected organ for signs of HHV-6 DNA and proteins. The mortality rate from severe drug hypersensitivity is approximately 10%, and death usually results from a late flare in symptoms and failure of one or more organ, typically the liver, kidney, lungs or heart. HHV-6 viremia occurs in the majority of extreme drug hypersensitivity cases (Pritchett 2012) but the reason for the disproportionate reactivation of HHV-6 is not understood. The case, which is presented by a Japanese …
Role for HHV-6 in patients with renal failure?
A new study from Brazil indicates that active HHV-6 infection may play a role in patients with renal failure prior to transplantation.
