RESUMEN
An epidemiological study was carried out to determine the prevalence of genital herpes simplex virus [HSV] infection in our adult females by utilizing an amplified enzyme immunoassay [EIA] and microscopic examination of Giemsa stained smears. Deep cervical swabs were collected from 110 females with genital problems attending the Obstetrics and Gynaecology Department at the Abbassi Shaheed Hospital, Karachi. Presence of Neisseria gonorrhoeae and other organisms in association with HSV was also determined by microbiological processing of each specimen. The overall incidence of genital HSV infection was found to be 17.2% by EIA. Intranuclear inclusions were seen only in 6.3% of the Giemsa stained smears. The infection rate among [patients and control] non-pregnant, pregnant and sterile groups was 17.46%, 25% and 15.38% respectively. The mean age of HSV positive cases was 30 years. The majority of females complained of excessive cervical discharge and pain in the lower abdomen. N. gonorrhoeae could not be isolated from any of the HSV positive patients. However, a number of other organisms including E. coli, Moraxella urthrales, Streptococcus agalactiae, Staph. aureus, and Candida albicans were isolated from HSV positive cases. These organisms may have played a role in the severity of infection. A high prevalence of HSV infection in pregnant women [25%] indicated the significance of screening for HSV in order to reduce the risk of neonatal infection. As there was no difference in symptoms recorded in HSV positive and negative cases, it would suggest that such infections cannot be diagnosed on the basis of symptomatology alone