Randomized Trial of CMV Prophylaxis in Critically Ill Patients

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) reactivation during critical illness has been associated with adverse clinical outcomes, perhaps because of the immunomodulatory effects of the virus. Elevated IL-6, an inflammatory biomarker, has been linked to CMV reactivation and to mortality in patients in intensive care. To assess whether ganciclovir prophylaxis can reduce IL-6 levels in critically ill nonimmunosuppressed patients, investigators conducted a randomized phase 2 clinical trial.

A total of 160 CMV-seropositive patients with sepsis or trauma and respiratory failure, requiring intubation and ventilatory support, were randomized to receive ganciclovir or placebo until day 14 or hospital discharge. (After day 5, patients in the ganciclovir group could be s…