Skip to main content
Genitourinary Medicine logoLink to Genitourinary Medicine
. 1986 Jun;62(3):181–185. doi: 10.1136/sti.62.3.181

Screening to detect asymptomatic shedding of herpes simplex virus (HSV) in women with recurrent genital HSV infection.

S E Barton, L K Wright, C M Link, P E Munday
PMCID: PMC1011933  PMID: 3015773

Abstract

To investigate the asymptomatic shedding of herpes simplex virus (HSV) from women with recurrent genital herpes infection, and to assess whether inapparent shedding could occur, eight such women were examined thrice weekly for one month. At each visit colposcopy was performed and multiple sites sampled for HSV. During the study four women had no recurrence of HSV infection, but four had at least one positive viral culture. One of these patients was asymptomatically shedding HSV on nine of her 11 clinic visits. Two episodes of urethral shedding were detected. In this group of patients the presence of inguinal lymphadenopathy was appreciably associated with the isolation of HSV from the urogenital tract.

Full text

PDF
181

Images in this article

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Adam E., Kaufman R. H., Mirkovic R. R., Melnick J. L. Persistence of virus shedding in asymptomatic women after recovery from herpes genitalis. Obstet Gynecol. 1979 Aug;54(2):171–173. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Barton S. E., Munday P. E., Davis J. M., Tyms A. S. Restriction enzyme analysis and herpes simplex infections. Lancet. 1985 Jun 22;1(8443):1448–1449. doi: 10.1016/s0140-6736(85)91876-8. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Bolognese R. J., Corson S. L., Fuccillo D. A., Traub R., Moder F., Sever J. L. Herpesvirus hominis type II infections in asymptomatic pregnant women. Obstet Gynecol. 1976 Nov;48(5):507–510. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Corey L., Adams H. G., Brown Z. A., Holmes K. K. Genital herpes simplex virus infections: clinical manifestations, course, and complications. Ann Intern Med. 1983 Jun;98(6):958–972. doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-98-6-958. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Ferrer R. M., Kraiselburd E. N., Kouri Y. H. Inapparent genital herpes simplex infection in women attending a venereal disease clinic. Sex Transm Dis. 1984 Apr-Jun;11(2):91–93. doi: 10.1097/00007435-198404000-00008. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Fish E. N., Tobin S. M., Cooter N. B., Papsin F. R. Update on the relation of herpesvirus hominis type II to carcinoma of the cervix. Obstet Gynecol. 1982 Feb;59(2):220–224. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Guinan M. E., MacCalman J., Kern E. R., Overall J. C., Jr, Spruance S. L. The course of untreated recurrent genital herpes simplex infection in 27 women. N Engl J Med. 1981 Mar 26;304(13):759–763. doi: 10.1056/NEJM198103263041305. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. McCaughtry M. L., Fleagle G. S., Docherty J. J. Inapparent genital herpes simplex virus infection in college women. J Med Virol. 1982;10(4):283–290. doi: 10.1002/jmv.1890100408. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Mertz G. J., Schmidt O., Jourden J. L., Guinan M. E., Remington M. L., Fahnlander A., Winter C., Holmes K. K., Corey L. Frequency of acquisition of first-episode genital infection with herpes simplex virus from symptomatic and asymptomatic source contacts. Sex Transm Dis. 1985 Jan-Mar;12(1):33–39. doi: 10.1097/00007435-198501000-00007. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Nahmias A. J., Josey W. E., Naib Z. M., Freeman M. G., Fernandez R. J., Wheeler J. H. Perinatal risk associated with maternal genital herpes simplex virus infection. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 1971 Jul 15;110(6):825–837. doi: 10.1016/0002-9378(71)90580-1. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Rattray M. C., Corey L., Reeves W. C., Vontver L. A., Holmes K. K. Recurrent genital herpes among women: symptomatic v. asymptomatic viral shedding. Br J Vener Dis. 1978 Aug;54(4):262–265. doi: 10.1136/sti.54.4.262. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Sacks S. L. Frequency and duration of patient-observed recurrent genital herpes simplex virus infection: characterization of the nonlesional prodrome. J Infect Dis. 1984 Dec;150(6):873–877. doi: 10.1093/infdis/150.6.873. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Vontver L. A., Hickok D. E., Brown Z., Reid L., Corey L. Recurrent genital herpes simplex virus infection in pregnancy: infant outcome and frequency of asymptomatic recurrences. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 1982 May 1;143(1):75–84. doi: 10.1016/0002-9378(82)90686-x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Genitourinary Medicine are provided here courtesy of BMJ Publishing Group

RESOURCES