Summary
Abdominal and back pain has until now been reported as a first sign of severe varicella in immunocompromised children only. We report two adult leukemia patients in whom these symptoms preceded visceral dissemination of varicella infection. Recognizing that this syndrome may occur in adult patients is of clinical importance, since it allows early diagnosis and treatment of the infection.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Case Records of the Massachussets General Hospital (1988) Case no. 25. N Engl J Med 318: 1669–1679
Feldman S, Hughes WT, Daniel CB (1975) Varicella in children with cancer: seventy-seven cases. Pediatrics 56: 388–398
Morgan ER, Smalley LA (1983) Varicella in immunocompromised children: incidence of abdominal pain and organ involvement. Am J Dis Child 137: 883–885
Prober CG, Kirk LE, Keeney RE (1982) Acyclovir therapy of chickenpox in immunosuppressed children — a collaborative study. J Pediatr 101: 622–625
Sheep DH, Dandliker PS, Meyers JD (1986) Treatment of varicella-zoster virus infection in severely immunocompromised patients: a randomized comparison of acyclovir and vidarabine. N Engl J Med 314: 208–212
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Milone, G., Di Raimondo, F., Russo, M. et al. Unusual onset of severe varicella in adult immunocompromised patients. Ann Hematol 64, 155–156 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01697404
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01697404