Herpes Zoster Ophthalmicus Secondary to Periorbital Cellulitis

TL;DR

This paper reports a rare case of herpes zoster ophthalmicus in a 54-year-old woman with an unusual medical history.

Contribution

The novelty lies in presenting an uncommon manifestation of the herpes zoster virus following periorbital cellulitis.

Findings

The patient exhibited a rare form of herpes zoster known as herpes zoster ophthalmicus.

The case highlights the importance of considering VZV reactivation in patients with atypical presentations.

The patient's medical history may have contributed to the unusual manifestation of the disease.

Abstract

Varicella zoster virus (VZV) infection, also commonly known as chickenpox, is a communicable disease most often contracted in childhood via contact, airborne, or droplet transmission. After about a two-week incubation period, patients can experience a prodromal phase, which includes a pruritic vesicular blistering rash with associated constitutional symptoms such as fever, headache, malaise, muscle aches, fatigue, and sore throat. Symptoms are often self-limiting and only require supportive care and observation. We report a case of a 54-year-old female who presented with an unusual background history and was found to have a rare manifestation of herpes zoster virus, presenting as herpes zoster ophthalmicus (HZO).

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