Research Article: Serum beta-2 microglobulin as a diagnostic biomarker for pediatric Epstein–Barr virus infections: a retrospective study
Abstract:
This study aims to evaluate serum beta-2 microglobulin (?2M) as a diagnostic biomarker for acute primary Epstein–Barr virus (EBV) infection in children, Additionally, serum vitamin D3 levels were compared between EBV-infected children and children with viral upper respiratory tract infection to explore their potential clinical relevance.
A total of 129 children with acute primary EBV infection were identified as the EBV group, while 130 children with viral upper respiratory tract infections in the same age group hospitalized during the same period were identified as the control group. The age, gender, and laboratory indicators of the two groups were analyzed and compared. Pearson's correlation was used to analyze the correlation between ?2M and serum EBV-DNA concentration. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was drawn, and the threshold and area under the curve (AUC) of ?2M for predicting the diagnosis of EBV infection were calculated.
The white blood cell count, serum lactate dehydrogenase, and alanine aminotransferase levels in the EBV group were significantly than those in the control group ( P <?0.0001), and Serum ?2M level were significantly higher in the EBV group than in the control group ( P <?0.001), while serum vitamin D3 levels were significantly lower ( P <?0.001). Pearson's correlation analysis showed a positive correlation between serum ?2M levels and serum EBV-DNA load ( r =?0.469, P <?0.01). ROC curve analysis revealed that the AUC of serum ?2M for diagnosing EBV infection was 0.907 (95% confidence interval 0.8723–0.9412; P <?0.01), with an optimal threshold of 3.3?mg/L, a specificity of 62.1%, and a sensitivity of 90.8%.
The serum ?2M levels are significantly increased in the stage of primary EBV infection in children, and ?2M appears to be a promising biomarker for predicting primary EBV infection. The serum vitamin D3 levels are significantly reduced in children with primary EBV infection, and the protective effect of vitamin D supplementation in those children warrants additional clinical exploration.
Introduction:
Epstein–Barr virus (EBV) infection is a common viral infection in children and is a lymphotropic herpesvirus. There are significant differences in the infection rates of children across various regions, with the peak of infection in China, for instance, occurring between 4 and 6 years of age ( 1 , 2 ). Most children with primary EBV infection manifest as infectious mononucleosis (IM), and some children manifest as chronic active EBV (CAEBV) infection and EBV-related hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (EBV-HLH) ( 3…
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