European Journal of Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Sciences

CORRELATION OF EBV (EPSTEIN–BARR VIRUS) DNA LOAD, SEROLOGIC PROFILE, AND NECK ULTRASONOGRAPHY FINDINGS WITH CLINICAL SEVERITY IN PEDIATRIC EPSTEIN–BARR VIRUS INFECTION: AN OBSERVATIONAL STUDY

*Ruba Halaseh MD, Aseel Nimri MD, Najat Aljbour MD, Ala’a AlMajali MD, Haneen Dalain MD, Alia Alkhlaifat MD

ABSTRACT

: A retrospective study of children presenting with EBV illness Queen Rania Al Abdullah Hospital for Children between January 2019 and January 2025. Demographics, symptoms, laboratory test, EBV DNA findings, serologic data, and neck ultrasonography (US) findings were collected from hospital electronic records. Outcomes included hospitalization and complications. Results: Eighty-seven children with EBV infection were included; 52 (59.8%) were hospitalized. Hospitalized patients had higher CRP and LDH levels and were more likely to present fever (88.46%), hepatosplenomegaly, neutrophilic leukocytosis, or pancytopenia. Non-hospitalized patients more frequently demonstrated lymphocytic leukocytosis. Complications like HLH, thrombocytopenia, and meningitis happened only in hospitalized cases. Neck ultrasonography findings showed no significant differences. Logistic regression showed that older age (OR 1.17, 95% CI 1.01–1.38), fever (OR 9.10, 95% CI 3.25–28.9), hepatosplenomegaly (OR 2.78, 95% CI 1.02–8.50), and elevated LDH (OR 1.00 per 100 U/L, p=0.035) were associated with higher odds of hospitalization, while high EBV DNA load was not. Conclusion: Hospitalization in pediatric EBV infection was more strongly associated with fever, inflammatory markers, hepatosplenomegaly, and abnormal hematologic profiles than with viral load.

Keywords: Epstein–Barr virus; pediatrics; infectious mononucleosis; cervical lymphadenopathy; EBV DNA load.