Neonatal Adenovirus Infection: Four Patients and Review of the Literature

Four newborns with adenovirus infection are described, and the profile of neonatal adenovirus disease is outlined based on the cases of these newborns and nine previously described. Characteristic historical features included prolonged rupture of membranes, maternal illness, vaginal delivery, and onset of illness within the first 10 days of life. Clinical findings included lethargy, fever or hypothermia, anorexia, apnea, hepatomegaly, bleeding, and progressive pneumonia. Thrombocytopenia, coagulopathy, and hepatitis were typical laboratory manifestations. Illness was severe and generally unremitting; only two survivors have been reported. Pathologic changes were prominent in lung, liver, and brain. Virus isolates, predominantly serotypes 3, 7, 21, and 30 were obtained from multiple sites and organs. Epidemiologic evidence suggests that viral acquisition from the mother, perhaps via the birth canal, is a major mode of transmission. Neonatal adenovirus infection, which is frequently disseminated and generally fatal, should be considered in the differential diagnosis of neonatal sepsis and pneumonia.