What does a positive JCV antibody mean?
A blood test is the only way to identify the presence of the virus. When someone says that they’re “JCV-positive,” or “JCV+,” they mean that they’ve had a blood test that was positive for anti-JCV antibodies. Most people with MS are likely to have been tested for the JC virus early in their treatment.
Is JC virus fatal?
When the JC virus gets into the brain, the biggest concern is that a person will develop a rare, but potentially fatal, disease called progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML). PML causes severe and rapidly progressing damage to the brain’s white matter.
How common is JCV virus?
The John Cunningham virus, known more commonly as the JC virus, is a very common virus in the United States. According to the World Journal of Neurosciences, between 70 and 90 percent of people in the world have the virus.
Can you live with JC virus?
Experts don’t know how it’s spread, but it’s thought that many people pick it up as kids through food or water that has the virus in it. It settles in your urinary tract, bone marrow, tonsils, or brain. It can stay there for years, and most people never know they have it.
What is JC virus in urine?
JC virus was rarely present in oropharyngeal fluid and blood samples, even in those obtained from immunosuppressed individuals, but it was commonly detected in urine samples from both groups, suggesting that urine contributes to transmission. Topic: polymerase chain reaction. hiv.
Is Tysabri an immunosuppressant?
Tysabri is an immunosuppressant medication. The symptoms of PML may begin gradually, usually worsen rapidly, and vary depending on which part of the brain is infected.
What causes JC virus?
Primary Cause of JC virus infection. The primary cause of JC virus infection is the result: of transmission of an infectious agent by another person by one or more of the following: saliva, air, cough, fecal-oral route, surfaces, blood, needles, blood transfusions, sexual contact, mother to fetus, etc.
What is JC virus by PCR?
JC Virus (JCV) Quantitative Real-time PCR. JCV is the etiologic agent of progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) which is mainly seen in HIV patients, organ transplant patients, and other immunodeficient syndromes.
What does JC positive mean?
Common MS terms. JC positive. When a person is determined to be JC positive, it means they carry what is known as the John Cunningham (or JC) virus. The JC virus is fairly common. Somewhere between 70% and 90% of people worldwide carry it. The virus is usually harmless and can be detected by a simple blood test.
What is JC disease?
JC virus: A virus that commonly causes infections of no consequence in children with a normal immune system, but which is responsible for an infection of the brain and spinal cord called progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) in people with AIDS and other forms of immune system impairment.