Herpetic arthritis associated with disseminate herpes simplex in a wrestler

A case of widespread inoculation herpes simplex of the skin is reported in a wrestler. Five days after the skin lesions appeared, the right knee became markedly tender and swollen. Herpesvirus hominis type I was cultured from the joint exudate as well as from the skin lesions. The determinant of the monoarticular localization of the arthritis appeared to be a prior injury to the knee, rendering it a specific site for deposition of the blood-borne virus.