Herpetic Infection of the Middle and Lower Respiratory Tract

Abstract

Fifteen cases of herpetic infection of the middle and lower respiratory tract are presented and discussed. All of the cases were documented histologically, two were confirmed by culture of Herpesvirus hominis and a third by electron microscopic observation of virions consistent with the Herpesvirus group within tracheal epithelial cells. The diagnosis was not made clinically in any of these cases. Six cases were discovered at necropsy and nine additional cases were found in a retrospective study of autopsy files. As the lesions were often focal or severely altered by superimposed infection, careful microscopic study was necessary for recognition of the diagnostic changes. Bacterial and fungal superinfection were found in 12 of the patients and represented potentially life-threatening sequelae.