A New Topical Treatment for Resistant Herpes Simplex Infections

To the Editor: For persistent mucocutaneous infections due to herpes simplex virus (HSV) in immunosuppressed patients, acyclovir is the drug of choice1. Foscarnet is an alternative agent,2,3 but it too may lead to resistance. A new approach to the therapy of HSV infections is based on the use of an acyclic nucleoside phosphonate, (S)-1-(3-hydroxy-2-phosphonylmethoxypropyl)cytosine (HPMPC), a potent and selective inhibitor of various DNA viruses, including HSV types 1 and 2 and thymidine kinase-deficient mutants of HSV4,5. We used HPMPC (1 percent, in Beeler base or Orabase), applied topically once a day on three consecutive days a… © 1993, Massachusetts Medical Society. All rights reserved.