[Significance and limits of PCR diagnosis in orofacial and genital herpes simplex virus infection in the pregnant woman and neonate].
The availability of methods of detection of DNA by PCR amplification has deeply modified the knowledge on herpes simplex virus infections. These methods have allowed a better understanding of the physiopathogeny of the disease. In particular, PCR has revealed the importance of asymptomatic viral shedding in infected patients. PCR helps diagnosis in many situations where viral isolation by culture proves difficult or impossible, i.e. in treated or atypical lesions, or in newborn central nervous system infections. In addition, PCR has underlined the existence of prolonged viremia in infected newborns. PCR helps sequencing of the viral genome for further epidemiological studies or analysis of resistance to antiviral drugs. Recent PCR-derived techniques have been developed to quantify viral load in real time, and allow to obtain a diagnosis in a few hours. Despite these major advances, the use of PCR in several clinical situations still needs to be further validated.
Laboratoire de Virologie, Hôpital Cochin-Saint,Vincent de Paul, Paris, France.
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Rozenberg
D005260:Female; D006558:Herpes Genitalis / Q000175:diagnosis*; D006560:Herpes Labialis / Q000175:diagnosis*; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods*; D011247:Pregnancy; D011251:Pregnancy Complications, Infectious / Q000175:diagnosis*; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D018139:Simplexvirus