Vaccine protects against maternal virus

A vaccine has been developed that could reduce the chances of suffering from a virus passed on to children while they are still in the womb.

Scientists at the University of Alabama, sponsored by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, found that cytomegalovirus (CMV) could be prevented by the new treatment.

It has published the results in the New England Journal of Medicine of a trial on the drug that saw women become 50 per cent less likely to be infected with CMV than those who received a saline injection.

Dr Robert Pass, the research leader, said: "This trial demonstrates that a statistically significant degree of protection against maternal CMV can be achieved through vaccination.

"This is an important step along the path towards the ultimate goal—a vaccine that can protect infants from congenital CMV infection."

However, he warned that, despite this being "an important step", a larger trial is required to prove conclusive.

Around 8,000 infants are infected with CMV, which can severely damage hearing and result in mental and physical impairments, each year in the US alone.

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