ISOLATION OF HERPES-SIMPLEX VIRUS FROM SEXUALLY-TRANSMITTED DISEASE PATIENTS IN IBADAN, NIGERIA

Background and Objectives: Despite the public health importance of her pes simplex virus infection in Nigeria, attempts have not been made to isolate and identify the virus. Goal of the Study : To isolate, ident ify, and type the virus from patients attending a sexually transmitted disease (STD) clinic in Ibadan, Nigeria. Study Design: One hundred fi fty-three clinical samples from 116 patients were taken and inoculated into tissue culture for virus isolation. The isolates were identified and typed using chloroform sensitivity test, histocytological study, Complement Fixation Test (CFT), and indirect immunofluorescent antibod y technique (IFAT). Result: Virus was isolated from seven of the 153 s amples. Two of the seven H ere HSV-1, and five were HSV-2. Conclusion: This is the first documented isolation of the herpes simplex virus in Nigeria. The study has provided baseline data for future studies on g enital herpes in Nigeria. These results mag have interesting implicati ons with respect of HIV transmission and other related sexually transm itted diseases in Nigeria,