My name is Sarah and my son was diagnosed with CMV after repeatedly failing his hearing test.

We had never heard of this virus and were devastated to learn what his life might be like. I desperately want to do more to educate people of the dangers of CMV and the simple measures people can make to protect themselves.

I'm now a passionate Trustee of CMV Action and I hope Crowdfunding can help us reach the women who research shows us are at greatest risk of infection.

Donations will help us produce and circulate educational resources but if you can share with any facilities of childcare workers too that would be fantastic. Please help us get the message out to every childcare facility in the UK and help reduce the risk of this common and dangerous virus.

CMV is the most common infection at birth in the UK and a major cause of childhood disability including but not limited to:

Profound Deafness
Vision Loss
Cerebral Palsy
Epilepsy
Autism
Severe learning difficulties

CMV is spread by close or prolonged contact with bodily fluids such as urine, saliva and tears so women who work with young children need to be careful, especially if they planning to start a family themselves.
Hygiene precautions have been proven to reduce the risk of infection but this information is not widely available to women. International evidence shows that educating women about these measures reduces infection rates. UK surveys show that women want this information and are prepared to change their behaviour.

We urgently need to raise awareness with all UK childcare facilities. We want to provide resources to educate childcare workers about the simple precautions they can take to reduce their risk of infection.
Your support will not only help us produce and circulate information by the end of 2016 but will directly help prevent future babies being at risk of CMV.
#cmveducation

www.cmvaction.org.uk @cmvactionuk