Chorioretinitis of the newborn with herpes simplex virus type 1. Report of a case

A disseminated herpes simplex virus (HSV) infection involving the central nervous system and accompanied by chrioretinitis in a a 3-week-old girl is described. The aetiologic diagnosis was established on the basis of vrius isolated from skin vesicles, and a significant rise in complement fixing antibodies to HSV type 1. The mode of transmission of the virus to the infant apparently was direct contact with an oral lesion in the mother, that was present at the time of delivery. The patient survived but became blind and microcephalic, with severe neurological sequelae. The virus isolated was identified as HSV type 1, which is an infrequent finding in herpetic chorioretinitis of the newborn.