Acute respiratory distress syndrome associated with HHV-7 infection in an immunocompetent patient: a case report

• Published in: The New microbiologica Vol. 32; no. 3; pp. 315 - 316
• Main Authors: Costa, Cristina, Bergallo, Massimiliano, Delsedime, Luisa, Solidoro, Paolo, Donadio, Pierpaolo, Cavallo, Rossana
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Italy 01.07.2009
• Subjects: Aged; Case reports; Female; Herpesvirus 7, Human - isolation & purification; Human herpesvirus 6; Human herpesvirus 7; Humans; Immunocompetence; Infection; Lung diseases; Lung transplantation; Pneumonia; Polyneuropathy; Respiratory distress syndrome; Respiratory Distress Syndrome, Adult - complications; Respiratory Distress Syndrome, Adult - immunology; Respiratory Distress Syndrome, Adult - pathology; Roseolovirus Infections - complications; Roseolovirus Infections - immunology; Roseolovirus Infections - virology; Viral Load
• ISSN: 1121-7138

The association of human herpesvirus-7 with lung diseases is poorly known, although it has been suggested a role in causing interstitial pneumonia in non-transplant patients and bronchiolitis-obliterans-organizing-pneumonia in lung transplant. No case of acute respiratory distress syndrome associated to human herpesvirus-7 has been reported, while only one case associated with human herpesvirus-6 has been described in an immunocompetent patient. This report describes the identification of human herpesvirus-7 reactivation in an immunocompetent patient with acute respiratory distress syndrome, as evidenced by the increasing viral load in bronchoalveolar lavage, polyneuropathy, histopathological findings, and tissue positivity. Human herpesvirus-7 reactivation in this context could be a consequence of the tissue damage due to the underlying lung disease, rather than the cause, as suggested by the temporal profile of viral load on BAL.