Human Herpes Virus 7 (HHV-7) A Possible Cause of Pityriasis Rosea

Abstract

This work was initiated to study the possible association between HHV-7 and PR which was a matter of debate in different studies. The present work included 30 cases of PR (17 classical PR, 7 Herald patch only and 6 PR inversa), 15 matched dermatologic controls (7 with psoriasis and 8 with tinea corporis) and 15 matched apparently healthy subjects. Nested PCR with specific primers for HHV-7 DNA sequence was done on the sera of PR patients, healthy controls and dermatologic controls. Among those subjects 56.7°/o of PR patients were positive for HHV-7 DNA, while none of the controls (healthy or dermatologic) was positive. Among the PR cases positive for HHV-7 DNA, 88.2°/o were of the classical PR variant, while PR inversa was not presented (0°/o) and only 12°/o were of the herald patch variant. All PR patients giving history of prodromal symptoms and household contacts (100°/o) were positive for HHV-7 DNA.