Comparative quantification of varicella-zoster virus in air, pharyngeal swabs, and vesicle content in patients with varicella, disseminated zoster, and localized herpes zoster

Kei Yamamoto; Maki Nagashima; Motoko Ishida; Masayuki Ota; Yuichi Katanami; Ryoko Adachi; Ayako Shigeno; Takeshi Tamaki; Norio Ohmagari

doi:10.1017/ice.2024.188

Comparative quantification of varicella-zoster virus in air, pharyngeal swabs, and vesicle content in patients with varicella, disseminated zoster, and localized herpes zoster

Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol. 2024 Nov 15:1-3. doi: 10.1017/ice.2024.188. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Kei Yamamoto¹, Maki Nagashima¹, Motoko Ishida¹, Masayuki Ota¹, Yuichi Katanami¹, Ryoko Adachi², Ayako Shigeno², Takeshi Tamaki³, Norio Ohmagari¹

Affiliations

¹ Diseases Control and Prevention Center, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, Tokyo, Japan.
² Department of Pharmacy, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, Tokyo, Japan.
³ Department of Dermatology, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, Tokyo, Japan.

PMID: 39545324
DOI: 10.1017/ice.2024.188

Abstract

We evaluated the viral load of varicella-zoster virus (VZV) in ambient air, vesicle, and pharyngeal swabs in VZV-infected patients. Of 46 cases, 6 had VZV detected in indoor air samples from patient rooms. Results suggest an association between viral load in the pharyngeal swab and indoor air.