The T-lymphoblastoid cell line CEM, persistently infected with herpes simplex virus type 1, has been used to examine the antiviral efficacy of human alpha interferon and acyclovir, both alone and in combination. Acyclovir and interferon each produced dose-dependent decreases in virus titer at concentration ranges of 1 to 100 microM (approximately 0.225 to 22.5 micrograms/ml) and 10 to 10,000 U/...

BACKGROUND Acyclovir (ACV) given to HSV-2 positive women after 36 weeks reduces adverse outcomes but its benefit at lower gestation was undocumented. We determined the effect of oral acyclovir administered from 28 to 36 weeks on premature rupture of membranes (PROM) primarily and preterm delivery risk. METHODS This was a randomized, double-blind placebo-controlled trial among 200 HSV-2 positi...

A controlled trial of oral acyclovir in herpetic dendritic corneal ulcers was carried out on 31 patients. All patients received minimal wiping debridement of the ulcer, following which they were randomly allocated to receive either oral acyclovir or placebo for 7 days. At the end of treatment 67% of dendritic ulcers in patients receiving acyclovir had healed compared with 43% in placebo recipie...

Acute kidney injury is an unfortunate complication of acyclovir therapy secondary to crystal-induced nephropathy. It is characterized by a decrease in renal function that develops within 24-48 hours of acyclovir administration indicated by a rapid rise in the serum creatinine. Failure to quickly realize this as an etiology of acute kidney injury can lead to excessive morbidity to the patient. T...

The purpose of this study was to determine whether acyclovir resistance in mice infected with herpes simplex virus could be overcome by using high doses of acyclovir or vidarabine alone or by using a combination of the two drugs. The results indicate that the mice infected intracerebrally were refractory to acyclovir alone but responded to vidarabine or a combination of vidarabine and acyclovir...

BACKGROUND Valacyclovir exhibits better oral absorption and higher, more prolonged serum concentrations than oral acyclovir. The efficacy of valacyclovir and acyclovir on genital herpes simplex virus (HSV) shedding was assessed in a double-blind, 3-period crossover trial. METHODS Sixty-nine immunocompetent participants with genital HSV-2 received oral valacyclovir, acyclovir, and matching pla...

Forty patients with disciform keratitis were randomly assigned to double-blind treatment with 3% acyclovir and 0.01% betamethasone drops or acyclovir and matching placebo. All patients who received the combination healed in a median time of 21 days, while 11 of 19 patients who received acyclovir alone were withdrawn because their condition remained static or worsened (p less than 0.001). The co...

Acyclovir suppressive therapy (400 mg twice daily) reduces herpes simplex virus (HSV) type 2-associated genital ulcer disease and lesional HSV shedding. In an international trial of acyclovir for suppression of HSV type 2 to prevent human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) acquisition (HIV Prevention Trials Network 039), acyclovir had a smaller effect on the frequency of genital ulcer disease as well...

BACKGROUND We evaluate the role of nerve growth factor (NGF) eye drops to treat a herpetic corneal ulcer resistant to systemic and local acyclovir treatment in an HIV-positive patient. CASE PRESENTATION A 68 year old HIV-positive male presented with a herpetic corneal ulcer which was treated unsuccessfully with acyclovir. Acyclovir sensitivity of herpes simplex virus was tested with a dye upt...