Pneumonia due to varicella zoster virus in adults: a review of 13 cases

Pneumonia due to varicella-zoster virus is a complication of chickenpox that appears almost solely in adults. The clinical picture ranges from varieties with few symptoms to those with severe respiratory insufficiency. This retrospective study of adult varicella pneumonia cases treated at our hospital over a seven-year period enrolled 13 patients (9 men and 4 women) whose diagnosis of varicella pneumonia was based on clinical and radiologic criteria during the course of disease. Three patients were immunodepressed (two with HIV infection and one with systemic lupus) and one patient was in her third month of pregnancy. Seventy-seven percent of the patients were active smokers. The most common symptoms apart from skin rash and fever were coughing and dyspnea. All had extensive bilateral nodular patterns visible on the chest film, with no pleural involvement or mediastinal adenopathy. All received intravenous acyclovir and outcome was good in all but one HIV-infected patient, who died. The pregnant patient required intensive care.