Abstract
In retrospect, progressive varicella (the clinical involvement of organ systems other than the skin, the prolonged appearance of vesicles, or clinically significant hemorrhage) is usually not difficult to distinguish from typical varicella. However this often fatal complication of varicella is difficult to anticipate even in children at high risk.
During the course of varicella, viral culture of buffy coats in human fibroblast tissue cultures were performed on 13 normal children and 15 children at risk of developing progressive varicella. Eight patients who developed progressive varicella had viremia in association with exanthem whereas no child who had a typical varicella course demonstrated viremia. In 6 patients with a progressive course, viremia was present prior to the clinical appreciation of a progressive course of the varicella infection. The viremia appeared to be cell-associated and thus may be amenable to rapid diagnosis by immunofluorescence or electron microscopy. The documentation of viremia preceeding the clinical manifestations of progressive varicella infection may allow the early recognition of those children in whom antiviral therapy may be beneficial.
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Myers, M., Strauss, R. VARICELLA-ZOSTER VIREMIA: ASSOCIATION WITH PROGRESSIVE VARICELLA. Pediatr Res 11, 503 (1977). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-197704000-00801
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-197704000-00801