1. How is EBV infection/Mono treated?
Care is largely supportive, rest, treating the symptoms, and avoiding any contact sports or heavy lifting for several weeks to months to avoid spleen rupture. There are no anti-viral medications or
vaccines available to speed healing or prevent infection.
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2. Do adults get Mono?
They do, but it is rare because most have already been infected at an earlier age. When they do, they tend to have less lymph node swelling and sore throat and more liver enlargement and
jaundice.
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3. Do EBV infection and Mono occur throughout the world?
Yes. In less developed nations, however, Mono is not as common because most of the population is infected with EBV earlier in life when symptoms are minimal.
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4. Can EBV be prevented?
Not at this time. It is too common in the population and, because the virus will reactivate intermittently in a previously infected person, usually without causing any symptoms, almost everyone is infectious at one time or another.
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5. If I have had EBV infection, can I still get Mono?
No. Once you have had an EBV infection, you will not get Mono. You could, however, experience similar symptoms from another viral illness.
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6. Why is Mono sometimes called “the kissing disease”?
This is because EBV does not pass through the air; it is present in saliva and is passed through mouth-to-mouth contact and, in the case of children, through saliva transfer to hands and/or toys, etc.
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7. Are there other types of tests available for EBV?
Yes. There are molecular tests that can detect and measure EBV
DNA. They can be helpful in diagnosing and monitoring EBV-related diseases such as Burkitt’s lymphoma,
Hodgkin’s lymphoma and post-transplant lymphoproliferative disease (PTLD).
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