INCREASED FREQUENCY OF COXSACKIE-B VIRUS IGM IN WOMEN WITH SPONTANEOUS-ABORTION

IgM antibodies to Coxsackie B virus serotypes 1-5 (CBV 1-5) were studied by radioimmunoassay (RIA) of blood samples from women who had undergone a spontaneous abortion or given birth to a stillborn child. Results were compared with those of controls comprising healthy pregnant women who had not suffered such experiences. Among 48 women with abortions, 16 (33 %) had CBV-IgM, while among the controls only three of 37 (8 %) had these antibodies, a statistically significant difference (P < 0·025). Among 21 women with a stillborn child, 11 (52 %) were CBVIgM positive, while the corresponding proportion in their controls was four of 18 (22 %), a difference which is not statistically significant. It is concluded that CBV may be an important causative agent in spontaneous abortions and possibly also in stillbirths. © 1992 The British Society for the Study of Infection.