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The probability that cytomegalovirus (CMV) is sexually transmitted is evidenced by its presence in semen, saliva, and cervical secretions. Male homosexuals have been known to be at particular risk, as have those with high numbers of sexual contacts. Women attending a sexually transmitted disease clinic have been shown to have antibodies to CMV at the rate of up to 37 percent of cases per year. Because CMV can be sexually transmitted, attention has been focused upon women of childbearing age because of the likelihood that the disease can be passed on prior to or during childbirth. If having several partners or frequent sex increases one's chances of being infected with CMV, adolescent girls may be at particular risk; the high rate of teenage pregnancy is evidence of the sexual activity of this group. To determine if there is a relationship between sexual activity among teenaged girls and CMV infection, a study was designed to study teenaged girls attending a sex clinic. There were 254 girls with a mean age of 15.8 years who were enrolled in the study, and all participants were interviewed to obtain demographic data and history of sexual activity, and they received laboratory tests for several sexually transmitted diseases (STD). It was found that 68 percent of the girls in the study tested positive for antibodies for CMV, meaning that they had been infected with the virus, whether they were symptomatic or not. Risk factors identified for infection with CMV were race (blacks were most likely to be infected), sexual activity history of greater than three years, and having had more than two lifetime sex partners. The results provide evidence for the hypothesis that sexual activity, incorporating frequency and number of partners, is an important risk factor for infection by CMV in this population. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)