
CME
Are You Ready to Tackle the Troll? New Guidelines for the Management of Post-transplant Cytomegalovirus Infection
Marcus Pereira MD, MPH, FAST
Activity Release Date: 16 October 2026
Professor of Medicine at CUIMC
Division of Infectious Diseases
Medical Director, Transplant Infectious Disease Program, Columbia University Irving Medical Center
Post-transplant cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection has long been known as the “troll of transplantation”—a hidden threat that can emerge after solid organ transplant (SOT) or hematopoietic cell transplant (HCT) and jeopardize patient well-being. CMV infection is associated with increased morbidity, mortality, graft loss, and hospitalization, as well as a substantial patient burden that many clinicians may underappreciate. Management becomes even more challenging when infection is refractory or resistant to treatment. To improve outcomes, healthcare professionals must be able to identify patients at risk for CMV infection and refractory/resistant disease, interpret diagnostic findings, apply updated guideline recommendations, and individualize antiviral therapy using current evidence. This comic-based, expert-led case activity follows a transplant recipient from the initial presentation of CMV infection through refractory/resistant disease, with patient perspectives woven throughout. Expert faculty perspectives and patient commentary will explore the clinical and psychosocial burden of CMV infection, risk assessment, diagnosis, treatment selection, resistance testing, and shared decision-making in posttransplant CMV care.
