Lymph node biopsy specimens from children and adults with HL were embedded in paraffin. EBV was identified by LMP1 amplification and Epstein-Barr-encoded RNA EBER by in situ hybridization (ISH) and genotyped as EBNA2A or EBNA2B using nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and specific primers for the detection of subtype.
Sixty-six samples were obtained from 3 hospitals¡ª42 (63 % ) from children and 24 (37 % ) from adults with HL. Thirty-two of the 42 samples (76.1 % ) were positive for EBV in children and 16 of 24 (66.6 % ) samples were positive in adults (P = .41). In both children and adults, EBV was found more frequently in male patients. Thirty-four of 48 cases could be typed (70.8 % ). EBNA2A was found in 7/21 (33.3 % ) children and in 4/13 (30.8 % ) adults (P = 1.0), and EBNA2B was found in 10/21 (47.6 % ) children and in 9/13 (69.2 % ) adults (P = .22). A mix of subtypes was found in 4/21 (19 % ) children.
EBV was found frequently in both children and adults with HL. EBNA2B was the most frequent subtype, and a high frequency of mixed subtypes was found in children.