J. Maertzdorf et al., Herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1)-induced retinitis following herpes simplex encephalitis: Indications for brain-to-eye transmission of HSV-1, ANN NEUROL, 49(1), 2001, pp. 104-106
Herpes simplex encephalitis is a severe neurological disease with high mort
ality and morbidity rates. Reactivated herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1)
can cause relapses and might even spread to the retina, where it can induce
a potentially blinding eye disease, known as acute retinal necrosis. In th
e present study, the HSV-1 strains in the brain and eye of 2 patients with
acute retinal necrosis following an episode of herpes simplex encephalitis
were genotyped. The HSV-1 strains in both the brain and eye were identical
in each patient, but they differed interindividually. The data suggest brai
n-to-eye transmission of HSV-1 in these patients.