title: Systemic and oral alterations in Brazilian patients with cutaneous herpes zoster.
abstract: Herpes zoster (HZ) is a virotic disease caused by Herpesvirus varicellae. The objective of this study was to determine the factors that trigger the disease, and the systemic and oral alterations present in Brazilian patients with herpes zoster. A total of 30 patients with HZ and 100 control patients with other diseases were studied. Of the 30 patients with HZ, 13 were male (43.3%) and 17 were female (56.7%), with an average age of 43.2 (range 3-78). The patients were submitted to general clinical, dermatological and intraoral examinations. Only 50% of the HZ patients reported emotional stress at the onset of the disease. A total of 3.7% of the patients were positive for HIV and 11.1% for systemic malignant neoplasm. Cutaneous lesions were found on the thorax (68.3%), face (20%), lower limbs (10%) and upper limbs (6.7%). Specific oral involvement such as oral HZ was not found. The presence of the disease may indicate a non-diagnosed malignant neoplasm and/or association with AIDS.
authors.affiliation: Research Center-Center of Higher Education of Dracena-CESD, Dracena, SP, Brazil. herongonzaga@terra.com.br
authors.forename: Heron Fernando de Sousa
authors.initials: HF
authors.lastname: Gonzaga
authors.forename: Maria Augusta
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Jorge
authors.forename: Lúcia Helena de Sousa
authors.initials: LH
authors.lastname: Gonzaga
authors.forename: Calógeras A A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Barbosa
authors.forename: Marcelo Donizetti
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Chaves
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001938:Brazil; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006562:Herpes Zoster / Q000150:complications*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009059:Mouth Diseases / Q000209:etiology*; D017193:Skin Diseases, Viral / Q000150:complications*