Atypical dendritic keratitis has been described following herpes zoster infection. This is the first reported case of atypical dendritic keratitis following classical varicella infection It also provides the first light and electron microscopic description of the varicella-zoster dendritic corneal lesion. The diagnosis is substantiated by the clinical appearance of the lesion and by the presenc...

A 30-year-old pregnant woman had skin lesions at 38 weeks of gestation. She was diagnosed as primary varicella zoster infection. Her clinical symptoms were high fever and generalized vesicles eruption. No serious maternal complication was found. The patient delivered a male baby 4 days after she developed skin lesions. The neonatal blood IgM against varicella zoster was negative. The baby was g...

Universal immunization of young children with 1 dose of varicella vaccine was recommended in the United States in 1995, and it has significantly decreased the incidence of chickenpox. Outbreaks of varicella, however, are reported among vaccinated children. Although vaccine effectiveness has usually been 85%, rates as low as 44% have been observed. Whether this is from primary or secondary vacci...

OBJECTIVES To present an up-to-date review of studies investigating the efficacy, adverse events and vaccination regimens of the varicella vaccine and the new presentation combined with the vaccine for measles, mumps and rubella. SOURCES OF DATA Bibliographic review of the MEDLINE and LILACS databases covering the period 1999 to 2006. SUMMARY OF THE FINDINGS The varicella vaccine protects 7...

Varicella-zoster virus (VZV) is a member of the Herpesviridae family, which causes varicella (chicken pox) and herpes zoster (shingles) in humans. Here, we report the complete genome sequence of varicella-zoster virus, isolated from a vesicular fluid sample, revealing the circulation of VZV clade VIII in Mexico.

In the industrialized countries of the West, varicella is largely a childhood disease, whereas reports from tropical countries indicate a significant incidence of varicella among adults. High ambient temperature, epidemiologic interference from other viruses, and race have been blamed. We tested our hypothesis that less exposure to varicella-zoster virus (VZV) during childhood in rural areas ac...

Two national surveys were conducted to evaluate the status of varicella case-based surveillance and outbreak response. Although progress toward national surveillance has been significant, a large number of jurisdictions are still without case-based surveillance. For jurisdictions beginning case-based surveillance with limited resources, a staged approach is recommended. The national outbreak su...

OBJECTIVE To determine if reductions in medically-attended pediatric varicella and herpes zoster occurred in Ontario, Canada, after publicly-funded varicella immunization was implemented in 2004. METHODS For fiscal years (FY) 1992-2011, we examined data on varicella and herpes zoster physician office visits, emergency department (ED) visits, hospitalizations (including for varicella-associate...

OBJECTIVES The aim of the research is to investigate the historical relationship between varicella and Streptococcus pyogenes infections. In the past few decades, varicella has been identified as a risk factor for invasive group A streptococcus infections. The question is whether this relationship also existed between varicella and scarlet fever in the historical era. METHODS The analysis beg...

BACKGROUND We recently reported a more rapid waning of vaccine-induced humoral immunity (measles vaccine) in children with asthma. It is unknown if asthma affects susceptibility to vaccine-preventable diseases. OBJECTIVE To determine whether asthma is associated with an increased risk of vaccine-preventable disease, e.g., breakthrough varicella infection. METHODS This was a retrospective po...