A Case of Herpetic Whitlow / 대한피부과학회지

ABSTRACT

Herpetic whitlow is a painful cutaneous infection that occurs on the fingers and toes, and it is caused by herpes simplex virus (HSV)-1 or -2. It is correlated with the immunocompromised state of patients or with occupations that are in frequent contact with the secretions or mucous membranes infected by HSV. We present here a 29-year-old woman who was referred to our department with recurrent vesicles and ulcerative lesion of the right 3rd finger. She was immunocompetent and did not have any occupational hazard of herpetic whitlow. We made the diagnosis of herpetic whitlow by the clinical features and the histopathologic examinations. In addition, we used polymerase chain reaction assay to detect the type of HSV and we confirmed she suffered with herpetic whitlow that was caused by HSV-2.