Severe Human Herpesvirus 7 Infection in Healthy Children

Human herpesvirus 7 (HHV^-7) is ubiquitous and infects most children. was considered to be rare. Severe HHV^-7 infection In this case series, we report the clinical findings and clinical courses of three immunocompetent children who had severe HHV^-7 infection: two fatal cases of encephalopathy and one patient with severe sequelae after myocarditis. In all three patients, HHV^-7 DNA was detected in acute phase specimens, including serum by real^-time PCR. In the myocarditis case, HHV^-7 DNA was also detected in myocardial tissue, suggesting that HHV^-7 was the cause. Patient 1 was a 6^-year^-old Japanese girl with encephalopathy who died one day after onset. Patient 2 was a 4^-year^-old Japanese girl with encephalopathy whose absence of brainstem reflexes was confirmed and died 29 days after onset. Patient 3 was a 22^-month^-old Japanese girl with myocarditis who managed with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation and survived but was left with severe neurological sequelae. Because HHV^-7 can cause serious outcomes in children, a virological search for HHV^-7 in severe infections needs to be aggressive, and cases should be accumulated.