title: Disseminated varicella infection in adult renal allograft recipients: role of mycophenolate mofetil.
abstract: Disseminated varicella zoster virus (VZV) infection is a rare complication after renal transplantation in adults. We report 4 cases diagnosed in our transplant patients. One of which was a primary infection (chicken pox) with multivisceral involvement (hepatitis, pneumonitis, myocarditis, and disseminated intravascular coagulation). The other 3 patients VZV-seropositive before transplantation suffered from disseminated zoster. No immunosuppressive drug was significantly associated with a higher risk of disseminated VZV infection. However, from our experience, we believe that mycophenolate mofetil (MMF), plays a part in the clinical presentation of the disease. Early treatment with high doses of acyclovir is fundamental in infection control. It is essential to perform a pretransplantation serological VZV study on all patients.
authors.affiliation: Nephrology Department, Kidney Transplant Unit, Hospital Universitari Germans Trias i Pujol, Badalona, Spain. rlauzu@ns.hugtip.scs.es
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Lauzurica
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Bayés
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Frías
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Fontseré
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hernandez
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Matas
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Jimenez
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bonet
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Romero
mesh_terms: D000212:Acyclovir / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000998:Antiviral Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002644:Chickenpox / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000517:prevention & control; D006562:Herpes Zoster / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000517:prevention & control; D014645:Herpesvirus 3, Human / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006801:Humans; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D015994:Incidence; D016030:Kidney Transplantation / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000276:immunology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009173:Mycophenolic Acid / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000627:therapeutic use*
chemical_list: D000998:Antiviral Agents; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents; D009173:Mycophenolic Acid; D000212:Acyclovir