Herpesvirus hominis type 2 meningoencephalitis following renal transplantation

Herpesvirus hominis (HVH) type 2 meningoencephalitis, confirmed by isolation of the virus from cerebrospinal fluid and brain biopsy specimens, is described in a 44 year old man following renal transplantation. An HVH type 2 genital infection developed two weeks after renal transplantation, which was followed by meningoencephalitis 10 days later. Subsequently an intracerebral hemorrhage developed with evidence of diffuse vasculitis on arteriography. In a second transplant patient a similar clinical syndrome also developed after an HVH type 2 genital infection, but viral studies were not made to confirm the etiology of the meningoencephalitis. HVH has been recognized as a cause ot mucocutaneous diseases in recipients of renal transplants, but involvement of the central nervous system has not been reported.