Extensive Disseminated Herpes Zoster in a Young Immunocompetent Male: A Rare Occurrence
Abstract
Herpes zoster is a viral infection caused by the reactivation of the varicella zoster virus. It usually presents with vesiculobullous lesions along a single dermatome. Disseminated herpes zoster (DHZ) is said to occur when there are more than 20 lesions outside the primarily affected dermatome. Cases of DHZ have been reported in elderly patients and those with states of immunosuppression such as HIV infections, cancer, post-COVID-19 infections, or patients on immunosuppressive drugs. However, here the authors are reporting a rare case of extensive cutaneous dissemination of herpes zoster in a young, healthy, immunocompetent male without any other comorbidities, treated successfully with intravenous acyclovir.
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complaining of left leg radiating pain and weakness: a case report and literature review. Geriatr Orthop Surg Rehabil.
2022 Aug 6;13:21514593221119619. https://doi.org/10.1177/21514593221119619
[2] Halasan C, Isache C, Sands M. A case of Disseminated Herpes Zoster in a patient with Multiple Sclerosis on Glatiramer acetate. IDCases. 2020;21:e00873. https://doi.org/10.1016/j. idcr.2020.e00873
[3] Patil A, Goldust M, Wollina U. Herpes zoster: a review of clinical manifestations and management. Viruses. 2022 Jan
19;14(2):192. https://doi.org/10.3390/v14020192
[4] Namratha BN, Navya S, Varala S, Krishna AV. A Case Report of Disseminated Herpes Zoster in Association with COVID-19. Indian J Dermatol Online. 2022 Mar-Apr;13(2):259-61. https://doi.org/10.4103/idoj.idoj_400_21
[5] Zerboni L, Sen N, Oliver SL, Arvin AM. Molecular mechanisms of varicella zoster virus pathogenesis. Nat Rev Microbiol. 2014 Mar;12(3):197-210. https://doi.org/10.1038/nrmicro3215
[6] Nair P, Gharote H, Singh P, Jain-Choudhary P. Herpes zoster on the face in the elderly. BMJ Case Rep. 2014 Oct
18;2014:bcr2013200101. https://doi.org/10.1136/bcr-2013-200101
[7] Crooke SN, Ovsyannikova IG, Poland GA, Kennedy RB. Immunosenescence and human vaccine immune responses. Immun Ageing. 2019 Dec 4;16:25. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12979-019-0164-9
[8] Riazuddin M, Jefri MH, Butt MI, Alsalamah HI, Sheikh AN. A case of disseminated herpes zoster with polyneuropathy
following the third dose of the pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. Cureus. 2023 Jan;15(1):e33962. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.
33962
[9] Drone E, Ganti L. A case of disseminated zoster in an immunocompetent patient. Cureus. 2019 Dec;11(12):e6286. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.6286
[10] Mohaghegh F, Hatami P, Aryanian Z. Case of atypical disseminated herpes zoster in a patient with COVID‐19: a diagnostic challenge in COVID era. Clin Case Rep. 2022 Feb;10(2):e05342. https://doi.org/10.1002/ccr3.5342
[11] Moon YS, Cho WJ, Jung YS, Lee JS. Disseminated zoster involving the whole body in an immunocompetent patient
complaining of left leg radiating pain and weakness: a case report and literature review. Geriatr Orthop Surg Rehabil.
2022 Aug 6;13:21514593221119619. https://doi.org/10.1177/21514593221119619
| Files | ||
| Issue | Vol 10 No 4 (2025): July-August | |
| Section | Case Report(s) | |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.18502/crcp.v10i4.21114 | |
| Keywords | ||
| Herpes zoster Immunocompetent Varicella zoster | ||
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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. |
How to Cite
1.
Maheshwari K, Saluja A. Extensive Disseminated Herpes Zoster in a Young Immunocompetent Male: A Rare Occurrence. CRCP. 2026;10(4):191-194.
