[Immunological investigations in recurrent herpes simplex (author's transl)]

Various immunological parameters were studied in 49 patients suffering from recurrent herpes simplex and in 100 healthy sex- and age-matched individuals. The study included determination of immunoglobulins in serum, classification and PHA-stimulation of peripheral lymphocytes as well as testing different granulocyte functions in vitro. We found a moderately reduced number of T-lymphocytes in 20 patients and a strikingly decreased rate of PHA-induced lymphocyte transformation in 30 patients. A slight impairment of chemotactic activity and markedly reduced capacity of killing Candida albicans blastospores by granulocytes was also found. These results point to an immunological alteration in patients with recurrent herpes simplex.