Herpes zoster - The analysis of clinical cases including molecular genetic characterization of HHV-3 in Faculty Hospital Hradec Králové
Abstract
Human herpes virus type 3 (HHV 3) or varicella zoster virus is a causative agent in two clinical entities. Primary varicella zoster virus (VZV) infection results in varicella (chickenpox); in some of cases, VZV reactivates later in life, producing a disease known as herpes zoster (shingles).
It is usually a self limited, unilateral dermatomal vesicular rash with pain, commonly severe. Acute cases often lead to complications involving the nervous system (postherpetic neuralgia, meningitis, and encephalitis), as well as to generalization, presentation of herpes zoster oticus or ophthalmic involvement manifested as herpes ophthalmicus.
Annually, about 6.000 individuals, mostly elderly, suffer from this disorder in our country. Higher prevalence (by 1/3) in women than in men has regularly been reported in the Czech population.
In our case reports, we describe two patients with herpes zoster, in which the detailed molecular genetic analysis of VZV was performed. Such data open new possibilities in study of correlations between virus genotype characterization and severity of disease course or drug resistance development.
Together with clinical data it might be possible to relate data acquired by this analysis to clinical findings.