Reactivated Varicella Zoster Virus May Cause Peripheral Arterial Thrombosis

İngilizce (OpenAlex)

To the Editor: The varicella zoster virus (VZV) is a double-stranded DNA virus of the Herpesviridae family. The virus, which causes chicken pox, primarily infects children. Generally, after the infection, the virus becomes latent in ganglionic neurons along the entire neuroaxis. In particular cases, years after the infection, the reactivation of the VZV can cause zoster (shingles). A 71-year-old man had arterial thrombosis after a herpes zoster infection. For 5 years prior to hospital admission, he had been receiving treatment for recurrent episcleritis and temporal arteritis. His first admission was because of numbness in his left hand. Two weeks before admission, he had been diagnosed with a herpes zoster eruption in his left upper extremity matching with the C6 dermatome. When his symptoms began, he was taking 20 mg/day leflunomide and 7.5 mg/day prednisolone. At his first examination, he had no pulse in his left radial artery. Double subtraction angiography of the left upper extremity showed the proximal left radial artery was thin-caliber and occluded (Figure 1). His left hand was supplied from the palmar arch, which included the ulnar artery (Figure 2 … Address correspondence to Dr. M.E. Tezcan; E-mail: engintez{at}yahoo.com