title: Pleural effusion due to herpes simplex type II infection in an immunocompromised host.
abstract: Pleural effusions caused by herpes simplex viruses are rare. We report a case of a young woman with acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) and prolonged neutropenia who developed pleural space infection with herpes simplex type II virus (HSV II), as confirmed by cytologic and microbiologic studies. We believe that this is the first report of a pleural effusion caused by HSV II, and suggest that this virus now be considered in the differential diagnosis of an unexplained exudative pleural effusion, especially in an immunocompromised host.
authors.affiliation: Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, The University of Pennsylvania Medical Center, Philadelphia 19104-4283, USA.
authors.forename: F J
authors.initials: FJ
authors.lastname: Trudo
authors.forename: E V
authors.initials: EV
authors.lastname: Gopez
authors.forename: P K
authors.initials: PK
authors.lastname: Gupta
authors.forename: M G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Schuster
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Tino
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006566:Herpesviridae Infections / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis; D018258:Herpesvirus 2, Human; D006801:Humans; D016867:Immunocompromised Host; D010996:Pleural Effusion / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000821:virology*; D054198:Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma / Q000150:complications / Q000276:immunology