Table 7 Virological and serological approach to HSV-2 diagnosis in the presence and absence of genital lesions, adapted from Gupta and colleagues[5]
From: Diagnosis of genital herpes simplex virus infection in the clinical laboratory
HSV-2 detection by direct method | HSV-1-specific IgG | HSV-2-specific IgG | Interpretation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
First assessment of genital lesions | Positive | Positive or negative | Negative | Acute HSV-2 infection |
Repeat HSV-2-specific serology within 15-30 days | ||||
Positive | Positive or negative | Positive | Recurrent HSV-2 infection with HSV-2 infection acquired at least 6 weeks ago | |
No lesions | NA | Negative | Negative | Patients at risk for acquiring orolabial or genital HSV-1 infection and/or HSV-2 infections |
NA | Positive | Negative | Patients at risk for acquiring orolabial or genital HSV-2 infections | |
NA | Positive | Positive | HSV-1 and HSV-2 past-infections | |
Recurrentgenitallesions | Positive | Positive or negative | Positive | Recurrent HSV-2 infection |
Negative | Negative | Positive | Possible recurrent HSV-2 infection Other potential causes of genital ulcerative disease should be considered |