Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42015059›Full record

Observational studyBMC infectious diseases2026

Clinical and genotypic characteristics of antiviral-resistant herpes simplex virus 1 and 2 infections: a case series.

Racha Ibrahim, Nadhira Fidouh, Vincent Bunel, Fabrice Bouscarat, Pauline Issaurat, José Fernandez, Véronique Joly, Christophe Rioux, David Boutolleau, Jade Ghosn

Abstract readObservational Study
In one paragraph

Observational study in BMC infectious diseases, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

Racha IbrahimInfectious Diseases Department, Bichat Claude-Bernard Hospital, Université Paris Cité AP-HP-Nord, Paris, F-75018, France. rachabrahim@gmail.com.
Nadhira FidouhVirology Department, Bichat Claude-Bernard Hospital, AP-HP, Université Paris Cité, Paris, France.
Vincent BunelPneumology Department, Bichat Claude-Bernard Hospital, AP-HP, Université Paris Cité, Paris, France.
Fabrice BouscaratDermatology Department, Bichat Claude-Bernard Hospital, Université Paris Cité, Paris, France.
Pauline IssauratCardiology Department, Bichat Claude-Bernard Hospital, AP-HP, Université Paris Cité, Paris, France.
José FernandezAP-HP. Sorbonne Université, Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital, Virology Department, National Reference Centre for Herpesviruses (Associated Laboratory), Paris, France.
Véronique JolyInfectious Diseases Department, Bichat Claude-Bernard Hospital, Université Paris Cité AP-HP-Nord, Paris, F-75018, France.
Christophe RiouxInfectious Diseases Department, Bichat Claude-Bernard Hospital, Université Paris Cité AP-HP-Nord, Paris, F-75018, France.
David Boutolleau *Sorbonne Université, INSERM, Pierre Louis Institute of Epidemiology and Public Health (IPLESP), Paris, UMR_S1136, France.
Jade Ghosn *Infectious Diseases Department, Bichat Claude-Bernard Hospital, Université Paris Cité AP-HP-Nord, Paris, F-75018, France.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Antiviral-resistant herpes simplex virus (HSV) infections predominantly occur in immunocompromised individuals and represent a major therapeutic challenge. We conducted a retrospective observational study to describe the clinical characteristics and genotypic resistance profiles of patients with antiviral-resistant HSV infections managed at our center between January 2016 and December 2023. Genotypic resistance testing was performed by sequencing the UL23 (thymidine kinase) and UL30 (DNA polymerase) genes at the French National Reference Centre for Herpesviruses (Paris, France). Ten adult patients with confirmed resistance to at least one antiviral agent were included. Seven patients were infected with resistant HSV-1 strains, including five solid organ transplant (SOT) recipients, one patient with pemphigus vulgaris receiving immunosuppressive therapy, and one immunocompetent individual. Three people living with HIV (PLHIV) had resistant anogenital HSV-2 infections. HSV-1 infections presented with diverse clinical manifestations, including oral lesions (n = 4), pulmonary involvement (n = 3), keratitis (n = 1), cutaneous lesions (n = 1), and esophagitis (n = 1), with three SOT recipients exhibiting multisite disease. Clinical samples were obtained from corneal, oral, bronchoalveolar lavage, genital, and esophageal sites. Nine patients harbored UL23 mutations associated with acyclovir resistance, including one previously undescribed mutation (I54K) confirmed by phenotypic assays. These mutations comprised amino acid substitutions (n = 3), frameshift mutations (n = 1), and premature stop codons (n = 5). One patient presented a UL30 mutation (R628C) conferring resistance to both acyclovir and foscarnet. All patients had prior or ongoing antiviral exposure, mainly to acyclovir. The mean time to resistance detection in SOT recipients was 172 days post-transplantation, including three cases occurring despite antiviral prophylaxis. Genotypic resistance correlated with clinical failure of empirical acyclovir in eight cases. Consequently, four SOT recipients received second-line treatment with foscarnet, with clinical improvement of lesions observed in three cases, while treatment was discontinued in one due to nephrotoxicity. Among PLHIV, infections included recurrent genital herpes and atypical pseudo-tumoral lesions, managed with foscarnet or adjunctive topical cidofovir or imiquimod. These findings highlighted the importance of genotypic resistance testing to guide management in cases of suspected antiviral failure.

Indexed as

Antiviral AgentsDrug Resistance, ViralHerpes SimplexHerpesvirus 1, HumanHerpesvirus 2, HumanAcyclovirAdultAgedDNA-Directed DNA PolymeraseFemaleFoscarnetGenotypeHumansMaleMiddle AgedMutationAcyclovirAntiviral AgentsDNA-Directed DNA PolymeraseFoscarnet

Identifiers

PMID42015059
PMCPMC13235102

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.