Main characteristics of patients with recurrent HSV-1 or HSV-2 DNA positive genital lesions, STI clinic, Public Health Service of Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 2000–2011*
| Variable | HSV-1 N=17 n (%) | HSV-2 N=33 n (%) |
|---|---|---|
| Demographics | ||
| Median age (IQR) in years | 34 (IQR 27–40) | 39 (IQR 32–48) |
| Ethnicity | ||
| Dutch | 14 (82.4%) | 18 (54.5%) |
| Surinamese/Dutch Antillean | 1 (5.9%) | 9 (27.3%) |
| South-American (other) | 1 (5.9%) | 4 (12.1%) |
| Other | 1 (5.9%) | 2 (6.0%) |
| Sexual preference | ||
| Heterosexual men | 2 (11.8%) | 10 (30.3%) |
| MSM | 10 (58.9%) | 18 (54.5%) |
| Women | 5 (29.4%) | 5 (15.2%) |
| New STI diagnosis and HIV status at current visit | ||
| HIV status† | ||
| Unknown | 3 (17.6%) | 0 (0%) |
| Negative | 10 (58.8%) | 16 (48.5%) |
| Positive | 4 (23.5%) | 17 (51.5%) |
| Early syphilis | 1 (5.9%) | 1 (3.0%) |
| Chlamydia‡ | 4 (23.5%) | 4 (12.1%) |
| Gonorrhoea§ | 1 (5.9%) | 2 (6.1%) |
| HSV recurrent episodes | ||
| 1 | 16 (94.1%) | 28 (84.8%) |
| 2 | 1 (5.9%) | 3 (9.1%) |
| 3 | 0 (0%) | 1 (3.0%) |
| 4 | 0 (0%) | 1 (3.0%) |
| Time to first recurrence (months) | ||
| ≥3–5 | 0 | 9 |
| 6–11 | 3 | 7 |
| 12–23 | 6 | 3 |
| 24–35 | 1 | 5 |
| 36–47 | 3 | 3 |
| 48–59 | 3 | 2 |
| ≥60 | 1 | 4 |
*Patient characteristics are from the consultation with the first recurrent genital HSV-1 or HSV-2 episode with a minimal window of 3 months from the first episode.
†Only patients who were not already known to be HIV positive were offered an HIV test. HIV status was considered unknown when no history of HIV was reported and no HIV test was performed at current visit; negative when the HIV serology test was negative at current visit and positive when reporting a history of HIV or when the HIV serology test was positive at current visit.
‡Being diagnosed with urogenital and/or anorectal chlamydia.
§Being diagnosed with urogenital and/or anorectal and/or oropharyngeal gonorrhoea.
HSV, herpes simplex virus; HSV-1, herpes simplex virus type 1; HSV-2, herpes simplex virus type 2; MSM, men who have sex with men; STI, sexual transmittable infections.