What are the common causes of acute diarrheal illness among solid organ transplant patients?
- Valganciclovir use has resulted in less CMV-related disease.
- Community viral pathogens, in particular Norovirus, are more common.
- In the setting of colitis, CMV remains the most common etiologic factor.
- CMV presence on biopsy polymerase chain reaction (PCR) does not always correlate to causative agent when on suppressive antiviral therapy and tissue evidence of CMV disease (histopathologic) is desirable.
- Parasitic infection rates in organ transplant recipients are not entirely known and are more common in developing countries.
- Clues of infection may be bronchopneumonia, prolonged fever, and meningitis.
- Pathways to infection include de novo, reactivation of latent infection, or transmission from the graft.
