Neonatal herpes simplex infection possibly acquired via maternal breast milk.
A newborn infant with disseminated herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) infection was determined serologically to have acquired the infection postnatally; his mother was found to have HSV-1 in her breast milk but had no history of genital lesions and negative viral cultures of cervix, vagina, and throat. We suggest that HSV-infected maternal breast milk may be a source of this infection for susceptible infants.
D005260:Female; D006561:Herpes Simplex / Q000382:microbiology / Q000635:transmission*; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007232:Infant, Newborn, Diseases / Q000382:microbiology / Q000635:transmission*; D008297:Male; D008895:Milk, Human / Q000382:microbiology*; D010614:Pharynx / Q000382:microbiology; D011247:Pregnancy; D018139:Simplexvirus / Q000302:isolation & purification; D013280:Stomatitis / Q000635:transmission