Student Body 1984: A Perspective

Abstract

Abstract “Acquired Immunodeficiency with Reversed T4/3T8 Ratios in Infants Born to Promiscuous and Drug-Addicted Mothers,” Arye Rubinstein, et al. A new syndrome of acquired immunodeficiency has been identified in seven children who were small for gestational age at birth and subsequently have exhibited failure to thrive, lymphadenopathy, parotitis, hepatosplenomegaly, interstitial pneumonia, and recurrent infections. All have a profound cell-mediated immunodeficiency with reversed T4/3T8 ratios. Six are hypergammaglobulinemic and one has low IgG levels. The mothers of five of the seven children are sexually promiscuous and/3or drug addicts. Three mothers have an immunodeficiency similar to that found in their infants. One of them died at age 33 years with a diagnosis of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. In five of the children and in three of their mothers, there is evidence of a persistent Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection. We speculate that a perinatal or in utero transmission of EBV can induce an “...