A RAPID SCREEN TEST FOR IN-VITRO SUSCEPTIBILITY OF CLINICAL HERPES-SIMPLEX VIRUS ISOLATES

A rapid screening test for antiviral susceptibility to acyclovir and foscarnet was evaluated in 320 herpes simplex virus (HSV) isolates from 197 patients. Of the isolates tested (16% HSV-1, 84% HSV-2), 60% were resistant in vitro to acyclovir and 5% were resistant to foscarnet using the plaque reduction assay. The rapid screening test, requiring only 3 days to yield a preliminary susceptibility result, was highly associated with the results of the plaque reduction assay for acyclovir and foscarnet (P less than or equal to .001 for each) and with the clinical response to antiviral therapy (P < .001, P = .001, respectively).