Diagnosis of Parvovirus B19-DNA by Dot-Blot Hybridization

Parvovirus B 19 was discovered at the Virus Reference Laboratory in 1975 by Cossart and colleagues (1 ). First found in healthy blood donors, parvovirus B19 infection usually manifests as erythema infectiosum (fifth disease) in children. In adults the infection can cause acute arthritis. The virus replicates in erythroid progenitors, and patients with an underlying hemolytic anemia can experience a transient aplastic crisis. Anaemia may occur in immunocompromised patients due to persistent B19 infection and this can be treated with immunoglobulin. Infection during pregnancy can result in fetal anemia, hydrops fetalis, and intrauterine death.