Clinical Findings and Autopsy of a Preterm Infant with Breast Milk-Acquired Cytomegalovirus Infection

Background Nonpasteurized, nonfrozen, fresh breast milk from mothers with positive cytomegalovirus (CMV) serology was initially contraindicated to very low-birth-weight infants because of the risk of milk-acquired CMV infection. Recently, the severity of this infection was increasingly discussed and the international guidelines now differ. Since 2012, the American Academy of Pediatrics has recommended nutrition through raw breast milk for all preterm infants. Case We report the case of an infant born prematurely at 27 weeks and 4 days and fed with raw breastmilk from day 12 of life (D12). He presented with a late-onset of CMV infection from D39. The CMV polymerase chain reaction (PCR), negative on D3, was strongly positive on D49, as well as the PCR on breast milk. He had CMV-specific immunoglobulin (Ig) M while his mother had only CMV-specific IgG. On D52, he deteriorated further with septic shock, and a fatal cardiac arrest on D54. His twin presented an asymptomatic CMV infection. The autopsy and histological examination showed evidence of numerous organ damage caused by CMV (with differences compared with congenital infection) but no evidence of bacterial infection. Conclusion Although rare, postnatal CMV infections transmitted by raw breast milk given to very low-birthweight infants can have dramatic consequences.