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Epstein-Barr Virus Seropositivity, Immune Dysregulation, and Mortality in Pediatric Sepsis

JAMA Network Open 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2025.27487

August 19, 2025 at 11:00 AM EDT

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Is Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) seropositivity associated with immune dysregulation and death during pediatric sepsis?In this cohort study of 320 children with sepsis, EBV seropositive status was associated with death directly and through the mediators hyperferritinemia and macrophage activation syndrome.These results suggest that latent EBV infection may be an important public health problem that contributes to chronic disorders of immune dysregulation and also acute disorders of immune dysregulation, such as pediatric sepsis.

Corresponding Author: Joseph A. Carcillo, MD, Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, 4400 Penn Ave, Faculty Pavilion, Ste 2118, Pittsburgh, PA 15421 (carcilloja@ccm.upmc.edu).

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