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What does varicella has to do with the herpes test?
Thank you for answering my question Dr. HHH. My question is what does varicella has to do with the herpest test? My doctor sent me for a test when I had a recurrence on my leg last year and it came out - varicella-zoster virus IGG AB, in range >5.00 reference range EIA value. It said the presence of varicella zoste virus IGG antibody suggesta recent or past infection. Varicella-zoster virus IGG, EIA reliably measure immunity due to previous infection but is unsuitable for the detection of post-vaccination immune status. I was vaccinated for varicella twice (by mistake) when I was a child. I don't understand if what I have on my leg is due to the vaccination? or if what I get on my leg is just simply herpes. Thank you.
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
You didn't need to pay $10 to start a new thread. This question would have been an appropriate follow-up to your original question.
Everybody who has had chickenpox or who has received the varicella zoster virus (VZV) vaccine will have that result. It is "unsuitable" to measure post-VZV immunization, because not all people who get vaccinated will have a positive result. But the opposite is not true; if positive, it can be due either to infection or vaccinatation. (The explanatory statements that accompany many lab test results often are crafted by the legal department to reduce the risk of lawsuit in the event somebody misinterprets the result.) In any case, you may well have been exposed to VZV as a child, with or without overt chickenpox, before you were vaccinated. At this point, you probably will never know whether your positive VZV antibody test is the result of your childhood immunization or an undiagnosed infection.
More important, recurrent herpes zoster (shingles) is extremely rare; most people who get shingles have only 1 or 2 episodes their entire lives. You can be certain your leg lesions are due to your HSV-2 infection, not your VZV immunization or infection.
Regards-- HHH, MD
Everybody who has had chickenpox or who has received the varicella zoster virus (VZV) vaccine will have that result. It is "unsuitable" to measure post-VZV immunization, because not all people who get vaccinated will have a positive result. But the opposite is not true; if positive, it can be due either to infection or vaccinatation. (The explanatory statements that accompany many lab test results often are crafted by the legal department to reduce the risk of lawsuit in the event somebody misinterprets the result.) In any case, you may well have been exposed to VZV as a child, with or without overt chickenpox, before you were vaccinated. At this point, you probably will never know whether your positive VZV antibody test is the result of your childhood immunization or an undiagnosed infection.
More important, recurrent herpes zoster (shingles) is extremely rare; most people who get shingles have only 1 or 2 episodes their entire lives. You can be certain your leg lesions are due to your HSV-2 infection, not your VZV immunization or infection.
Regards-- HHH, MD
My previous question was re. to decipher the HSV test. This is a follow up to my follow up question "What does varicella.....I forgot to mention that last year was the first time I had a test done on my leg and it came back with the results already mentioned on the above question.
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
The second paragraph in my reply should have started "Some people", not "Everybody".
HHH, MD
HHH, MD
You are reading content posted in the STDs Forum
Herpes spreads by oral, vaginal and anal sex.
Herpes sores blister, then burst, scab and heal.
STIs are the most common cause of genital sores.
Millions of people are diagnosed with STDs in the U.S. each year.
STDs can't be transmitted by casual contact, like hugging or touching.
Syphilis is an STD that is transmitted by oral, genital and anal sex.
