Assessment of Oral Shedding of Herpes Simplex Virus Before and After Endodontic and Fixed Partial Prosthodontics Treatment in Patients with Recurrent Herpes Simplex

Herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) as a member of the herpes virus family recurs in 25% of infected patients 1 - 4 times a year. Reactivation of the virus in the oral mucosa is triggered by stress, sunray, menstruation and trauma to the face. The current study aimed to evaluate the effect of fixed prosthetic treatment and root canal therapy on symptomatic and asymptomatic shedding of HSV-1 virus into the saliva. Twenty two patients with a history of recurrent herpes simplex infection were selected, 11 of whom underwent endodontic treatment and 11 received fixed prosthesis treatment. Saliva samples were obtained immediately before and three days after spitting method of collection. The samples were stored at -70°C and then examined via the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique in order to detect probable shedding of the virus. In general, 72.7% (P = 0.09) and 63.6% (P = 0.09) of the samples were positive for HSV-1 in the endodontic and fixed prosthesis groups, respectively. The results of this study indicated that dental treatment could be considered as a risk factor for asymptomatic recurrence of HSV-1 virus in the oral cavity. Therefore, to prevent HSV infection, the use of infection control measures and prophylactic antiviral therapy is critical in immunocompromised patients.