Intractable diarrhea from cytomegalovirus enterocolitis in an immunocompetent infant.

Abstract

Infection with cytomegalovirus (CMV) in infants can be congenital or perinatal. Infected infants may be asymptomatic or present with pneumonia, rash, hepatosplenomegaly, or encephalitis.1 In the presence of an immunodeficiency, severe and sometimes fatal disease may occur. To our knowledge, CMV has not been identified previously as a cause of intractable diarrhea of infancy. We report the case of a 5-week-old immunocompetent infant with intractable diarrhea attributable to CMV-induced enterocolitis. Recognition of this infection and initiation of ganciclovir therapy was associated with a rapid improvement and resolution of the diarrhea.