Objective: Introduction: Herpes zoster (HZ), or shingles, is localized disease characterized by unilateral radicular pain and a vesicular rash limited to the area of skin innervated by a single dorsal root or cranial sensory ganglion. Whereas varicella, or chickenpox, results from primary exogenous varicella-zoster virus (VZV) infection, HZ is caused by reactivation of endogenous VZV that has persisted in latent form within sensory ganglia following an earlier episode of chickenpox. The aim: To explore the clinical features, diagnosis, and treatment of CNS injury caused by VZV infection in a prospective single center study from January 2014 to January 2018.
Patients And Methods: Materials and methods: 117 adult patients, among which young women predominated with confirmed VZV infection were analyzed in the study. CSF and blood contents, antibody for herpes zoster M and G classes, and MRI scans have been studied, but the crucial diagnostic sign was the presence of specific viral DNA in the CSF or blood. The main clinical manifestations of the disease were ganglionitis and ganglioradiculoneuritis. Another brain lesion like uveitis, encephalitis and vasculitis were observed also. A clinical case of an unusual course of VZV-infection is given.
Results: Results and conclusions: The most common clinical variants of HZ were ganglionitis (69.7%). Cranial localization was observed in 31% of patients, spinal one - in 38.7%, injury to the meninges was found in 16.3% of patients.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
---|
J Med Virol
January 2025
Department of Rheumatology and Immunology, The Affiliated Suqian First People's Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Suqian, Jiangsu, China.
Varicella, a highly contagious disease caused by the varicella-zoster virus (VZV), remains prevalent in China despite the introduction of the varicella vaccine in 1997. The current vaccination protocol in China involves a voluntary, self-funded single-dose regimen. This study aims to investigate the longevity of immune response in Chinese children following two-dose varicella vaccination administered at different intervals, with the objective of optimizing vaccination strategies.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBMC Infect Dis
January 2025
Department of Endocrinology, Guang'anmen Hospital, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China.
Background: Diabetes and malignant tumors often lead to abnormal immune function, increasing susceptibility to herpes zoster and severe post-herpetic neuralgia. Renal insufficiency following renal cell carcinoma surgery can be compounded by treatment with nephrotoxic antiviral drugs. There have also been case reports of herpes zoster occurring at the surgical site.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGynecol Obstet Fertil Senol
January 2025
Division of Virology, WHO Rubella National Reference Laboratory, Paris Saclay University Hospital, APHP, Paris, France; Université Paris-Saclay, INSERM U1184, CEA, Center for Immunology of Viral, Auto-immune, Hematological and Bacterial diseases (IMVA-HB/IDMIT), Fontenay-aux-Roses, France.
The Société de Pathologie Infectieuse de Langue Française released in 2024 a new national recommendation for clinical practice on the prevention and management of varicella zoster virus (VZV) infection during pregnancy and the perinatal period. The previous recommendation was issued in 1998, at a time of anti-VZV immunoglobulins shortage; it has hence become obsolete. This recommendation is a formalized expert consensus focusing on infectious diseases management; it is drawn up by a multidisciplinary working group (infectiologists, obstetricians, pediatricians, microbiologists, midwives, hygienists).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGerms
September 2024
MD, PhD, School of Medicine, University of Crete, 71003 Heraklion, Greece.
Introduction: Central nervous system (CNS) infection due to the varicella zoster virus (VZV) can complicate the primary infection or the reactivation, leading to significant mortality and morbidity. This study aimed to describe the clinical, laboratory, and radiological characteristics of patients with confirmed VZV CNS infection in a tertiary hospital in Greece.
Methods: Data about patients hospitalized from January 2018 to September 2023 with CNS infection by VZV, confirmed by a syndromic polymerase chain reaction in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), were retrospectively collected and evaluated.
Front Cell Infect Microbiol
January 2025
Department of Neurology, Harrison International Peace Hospital, Hengshui, China.
Purpose: Varicella zoster virus-related encephalitis (VZV-RE) is a rare and often misdiagnosed condition caused by an infection with the VZV. It leads to meningitis or encephalitis, with patients frequently experiencing poor prognosis. In this study, we used metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS) to rapidly and accurately detect and identify the VZV pathogen directly from cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples, aiming to achieve a definitive diagnosis for encephalitis patients.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!