@article {Gonzalez1336, author = {Benito Gonzalez and Carmen Larra{\~n}aga and Oscar Le{\'o}n and Patricia D{\'\i}az and Marta Miranda and Marcelo Barr{\'\i}a and Aldo Gaggero}, title = {Parvovirus B19 may have a role in the pathogenesis of juvenile idiopathic arthritis.}, volume = {34}, number = {6}, pages = {1336--1340}, year = {2007}, publisher = {The Journal of Rheumatology}, abstract = {OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence of human parvovirus B19 infection in patients with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) by detection of specific IgM, IgG, and viral DNA. METHODS: Serum samples of 50 patients with diagnosis of JIA and 39 healthy controls were analyzed by ELISA to detect IgG and IgM anti-B19-specific antibodies. The parvovirus B19 genome was detected by nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The average age of the patients was 9.6 years (2-14 yrs); 30 were female (60\%) and 20 male (40\%). The definitive diagnoses of these patients corresponded to 19 systemic forms (38\%), 11 to the oligoarticular variety (22\%) and 20 to the polyarticular (40\%). The average age of the control group was 7.8 years (2-16 yrs); the distribution by sex was 25 females (64\%) and 14 males (36\%). RESULTS: IgM against parvovirus B19 was detected in 20\% of the cases (10 patients) and B19 DNA genome by PCR in 48\% (24 patients); in 10\% of the cases (5 patients), both markers were detected. IgG was found in 32\% (16 patients). In the control group neither IgM nor the viral genome was detected. However, 43.5\% of the controls (17/39) had IgG against parvovirus B19, indicating past infection by the virus. CONCLUSION: Our study confirms recent observations regarding a high prevalence of viral DNA in JIA patients and a possible role of this viral infection in JIA pathogenesis.}, issn = {0315-162X}, URL = {https://www.jrheum.org/content/34/6/1336}, eprint = {https://www.jrheum.org/content/34/6/1336.full.pdf}, journal = {The Journal of Rheumatology} }