[The role of cytomegaloviruses in childhood deafness].
The relationship between cytomegalovirus (CMV) and the auditory apparatus is still unclear. The authors examined 120 children from nursery as well as elementary schools for children with hearing defects and, using the complement-fixation method, they determined the CMV antibodies. The result showed a higher quantity of CMV than that found in a group of healthy children. A detailed examination of the auditory functions (of what remained of them) in this group did not eliminate the possibility of CMV effect on the cochlea, acoustic nerve or even on the higher levels of the hearing passage.