Antiherpesvirus Agents

ANTIHERPESVIRUS AGENTS

The following drugs are used primarily in the treatment of herpesviruses. Among these are herpes simplex virus–1 (HSV-1), which typically causes herpes labialis (cold sores) or herpes esophagitis; herpes simplex virus–2 (HSV-2), which is responsible for most cases of genital herpes; varicella zoster virus (VZV), which pro-duces chickenpox and shingles; Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), which is the major cause of infectious mononu-cleosis; and cytomegalovirus (CMV), which can produce pneumonia, gastroenteritis, retinitis, encephalitis, and mononucleosis in immunocompromised individuals.