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Patients with latent herpes simplex virus (HSV) in the trigeminal ganglion are at risk for HSV reactivation after injury to trigger points in the perioral region. Chemical peels, dermabrasion, and laser resurfacing can trigger HSV reactivation. The virus may spread throughout the treatment field and result in significant scarring. These authors retrospectively evaluated 181 consecutive patients who underwent perioral phenol peel or dermabrasion from 1983 to 1990.
Sixty patients had a history of oral HSV infection. Fifty percent of the 12 patients with a positive history who did not receive prophylactic oral acyclovir developed extensive facial herpes after the perioral procedure. Twenty-nine percent of the 14 patients with a positive history…