An outbreak of herpes simplex virus type I gingivostomatitis in a dental hygiene practice.
An outbreak of herpes simplex virus (HSV) type I gingivostomatitis occurred in a dental hygiene practice in November 1981. An epidemiologic investigation disclosed that 20 of 46 patients seen by the dental hygienist during a four-day period had this illness, whereas none of 26 patients seen by the dentist alone became ill. One day after the outbreak, the hygienist was found to have a herpetic whitlow. Identical endonuclease restriction enzyme type I HSV was isolated from the left index finger of the hygienist and from nine of 16 patients. The nine patients with positive cultures all had at least a fourfold increase in complement fixing antibody titer. A similar significant increase in titer indicated another seven cases.
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000032:analysis; D002648:Child; D003756:Dental Hygienists; D004196:Disease Outbreaks / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006561:Herpes Simplex / Q000635:transmission; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D009784:Occupational Diseases / Q000635:transmission*; D018139:Simplexvirus / Q000276:immunology; D012874:Skin Diseases, Infectious / Q000635:transmission; D013283:Stomatitis, Herpetic / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology / Q000276:immunology / Q000635:transmission
D000914:Antibodies, Viral