Herpes virus infection in peritoneal fluid: a case report and review of literature.

Herpetic infections in body cavity fluids are unusual and are rarely reported in the cytology literature. We report a case of a 74-yr-old woman who developed ascites after undergoing an elective laparoscopic cholecystectomy for biliary colic. Cytology of peritoneal fluid revealed changes in a herpes simplex virus (HSV) infection that was confirmed by immunocytological staining.