Herpes and Candida

Candida lowers the immune system, and can lead to viral and autoimmune diseases.  Candida and HSV-1 and HSV-2 herpes can appear together in the same lesions and infected tissue, in the mouth, throat, or genitals, or skin.  This can lead to a nasty and chronic flareup that is difficult to treat; the yeast must be treated along with the herpes.  As both candida and herpes lower the immune system, the double combination makes fighting the infections more difficult.  Candida and HSV6 herpes is also a viscious combination, and is implicated in Autism.

Oesophagitis--a complication of inhaled steroid therapy.

Hemstreet MP, Reynolds DW, Meadows J Jr.

The hazards of steroid therapy, both inhaled and oral, in the asthmatic patient are well recognized. The following case report presents an unusual complication of steroid therapy, namely, that of a concomitant Candida and Herpes simplex oesophagitis occurring in a steroid-dependent 15-year-old asthmatic who had been maintained on inhaled beclomethasone for approximately 15 monts. Oesophagoscopy revealed a 'cottage cheese' appearance of the distal oesophagus. Cultures of the biopsy specimens obtained during oesophagoscopy grew Candida and Herpes simplex virus. Lymphocyte stimulation studies were consistent with a primary cellular response, although the neutralizing antibody titres to the Herpes simplex virus were initially high and remained stable throughout the illness and convalescent period. The patient responded well to oral nystatin therapy and developed no evidence of disseminated herpes. Eleven months after the initial episode, the patient's oropharynx cultured Herpes simplex virus but not Candida. Doctors who care for asthmatic patients need to be aware of the possibility of a herpetic as well as a candidal oesophagitis as a significant complication of inhaled steroid therapy.