This addition is to ask for special prayers for my Aunt Rhonda, Marty's wife. Ten days ago, she entered the hospital with CMV colitis. Antibiotics have not been been able to cure her fever. She has had a blood transfusion no effect. She has progressed to congestive heart failure and been admitted into ICU. The next few days are critical. Please include her in your fasting and prayers this weekend. It will bring great comfort to our family. We love her and pray she will be able to recover quickly.
Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is a member of a group of herpes-type viruses. It is related to the virus that causes chickenpox. Infection with CMV is very common.
The infection is spread by saliva, urine, respiratory droplets, sexual contact, and blood transfusions. Most humans are exposed to the virus in their lifetime, but it usually produces no symptoms in healthy people. However, serious CMV infections can occur in people with weakened immune systems. This includes patients receiving chemotherapy for cancer treatment and patients on immune-suppressing medicines following an organ transplant. People with inflammatory bowel disease can develop gastrointestinal CMV infections.
In rare instances, more severe CMV infection involving the GI tract has been reported in people with healthy immune systems. When CMV colitis occurs in patients with normal immune systems, the patients typically have other serious medical conditions such as severe injury, kidney failure, or infection.
