SHOULD INFECTIOUS MONONUCLEOSIS BE TREATED?

Key words: Infectious mononucleosis, Acyclovir, Corticosteroids

Symptoms are usually mild in young children, but in older children and adolescents systemic and pharingeal complains can be more severe, sometimes with significant airway obstruction. Only supportive care is usually recommended. This paper reports the risults of a recent meta-analysis reviewing the use of acyclovir in IM. This review concludes that acyclovir is effective when administred whithin the first seventytwo hours from the onset of the disease and recommends acyclovir for immunocompromised patients. Pros and cons of steroids treatment is also discussed and the authors conclude that the risks outweigh the benefits.