Also called: Also called: Glandular fever, Kissing disease, Mono, Mononucleosis
Infectious mononucleosis, or "mono", is an infection caused by the Epstein-Barr virus. The virus spreads through saliva, which is why it's sometimes called "kissing disease." Mono occurs most often in 15 to 17-year-olds. However, you can get it at any age. Symptoms of mono include
- Fever
- Sore throat
- Swollen lymph glands
Sometimes you may also have a swollen spleen. Serious problems are rare.
A blood test can show if you have mono. Most people get better in two to four weeks. However, you may feel tired for a few months afterward. Treatment focuses on helping symptoms and includes medicines for pain and fever, warm salt water gargles and plenty of rest and fluids.
-
Epstein-Barr Virus (Mononucleosis)
(Patient Education Institute) - Requires Flash Player - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/tutorials/epsteinbarrvirusmono/htm/index.htm
Also available in Spanish http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/spanish/tutorials/epsteinbarrvirusmonospanish/htm/index.htm -
Mononucleosis(American Academy of Family Physicians) - http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/common/infections/common/viral/077.printerview.html
Also available in Spanish http://familydoctor.org/online/famdoces/home/common/infections/common/viral/077.printerview.html
- Epstein-Barr Virus and Infectious Mononucleosis(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/diseases/ebv.htm
- Mononucleosis(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) - http://www.mayoclinic.com/print/mononucleosis/DS00352/DSECTION=all&METHOD=print
- Epstein-Barr Virus Antibodies Test(American Association for Clinical Chemistry) - http://www.labtestsonline.org/understanding/analytes/ebv/test.html
- Mono Test(American Association for Clinical Chemistry) - http://www.labtestsonline.org/understanding/analytes/mono/test.html
- Mononucleosis: Can It Recur?(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) - http://www.mayoclinic.com/print/mononucleosis/AN01375/METHOD=print
-
Epstein-Barr Virus (Mononucleosis)(Patient Education Institute) - Requires Flash Player - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/tutorials/epsteinbarrvirusmono/htm/index.htm
Also available in Spanish http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/spanish/tutorials/epsteinbarrvirusmonospanish/htm/index.htm
-
ClinicalTrials.gov: Epstein-Barr Virus Infections
(National Institutes of Health) - http://clinicaltrials.gov/search/open/condition=%22Epstein-Barr+Virus+Infections%22
-
ClinicalTrials.gov: Infectious Mononucleosis(National Institutes of Health) - http://clinicaltrials.gov/search/open/condition=%22Infectious+Mononucleosis%22
References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)
- Article: Detailed analysis of Epstein-Barr virus-specific CD4+ and CD8+ T cell... - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=18549439&tool=MedlinePlus
- Article: Pharyngitis of infectious mononucleosis: computed tomography findings. - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=18509726&tool=MedlinePlus
- Article: Symptomatic atrial fibrillation with infectious mononucleosis. - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=18474702&tool=MedlinePlus
- Infectious Mononucleosis -- see more articles - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=search&db=pubmed&term=infectious+mononucleosis[majr]+AND+english[la]+AND+humans[mh]+NOT+(letter[pt]+OR+editorial[pt])&doptcmdl=summary&cmd_current=Limits&pmfilter_EDatLimit=last+1+Year&tool=MedlinePlus
- Epstein-Barr virus infections -- see more articles - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=search&db=pubmed&term=(epstein-barr+virus+infections[majr:noexp]+OR+herpesvirus+4,human[majr]+NOT+infectious+mononucleosis[majr])+AND+humans[mh]+AND+english[la]+AND+(review[pt]+OR+guideline[pt]+OR+clinical+trial[pt]+OR+jsubsetk[text]+OR+patient+education+handout[pt]+OR+jsubsetaim[text]+OR+jsubsetn[text])+NOT+(editorial[pt]+OR+letter[pt])&doptcmdl=summary&cmd_current=Limits&pmfilter_EDatLimit=last+1+Year&tool=MedlinePlus
- mononucleosis - http://vsearch.nlm.nih.gov/vivisimo/cgi-bin/query-meta?v:project=medlineplus&binning-state=group%3d%3dMedical%20Encyclopedia&query=mononucleosis
-
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - http://www.cdc.gov/
Also available in Spanish http://www.cdc.gov/spanish/
-
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases - http://www3.niaid.nih.gov/
-
Mononucleosis(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/parent/infections/common/mono.html
Also available in Spanish http://kidshealth.org/parent/en_espanol/infecciones/mononucleosis_esp.html
-
What's Mono?(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/kid/talk/qa/mono.html
Also available in Spanish http://kidshealth.org/kid/en_espanol/comunes/mono_esp.html
- How Is Mono Spread?(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/teen/expert/illnesses/expert_mono.html
-
How Long Is Mono Contagious?(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/teen/infections/common/mono_contagious.html
Also available in Spanish http://kidshealth.org/teen/en_espanol/enfermedades/mono_contagious.html
-
Mononucleosis(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/teen/infections/common/mononucleosis.html
Also available in Spanish http://kidshealth.org/teen/en_espanol/infecciones/mononucleosis_esp.html
- Immune System - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/immunesystem.html
- Infections - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/infections.html
The primary NIH organization for research on Infectious Mononucleosis is the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases - http://www.niaid.nih.gov/