Association of varicella zoster dermatitis with acute retinal necrosis syndrome

The authors report seven patients in whom the acute retinal necrosis (ARN) syndrome developed shortly after cutaneous varicella zoster infection. The length of time between the skin infection and ARN varied from 5 days to 3 months. Both eyes were affected in one of seven cases. The ophthalmic branch of cranial nerve V ipsilateral to an affected eye was involved by the zoster dermatitis in only two of the seven cases. The association lends further support to the proposal that herpes zoster virus is a major cause of ARN. A history of recent zoster dermatitis should be sought in patients with ARN.