Grenz Ray Treatment of Recurrent Herpes Simplex

Radiotherapy of Benign Dermatoses: Indications, Practice, and Results

“…Two recent reports, indicate that grenz‐ray therapy or treatment with other relatively soft rays may be effective in cases of herpes simplex that recur in exactly the same site. Treatment was given during the acute stage of the disease (Table ).…”

“…According to the authors cited, the beneficial effects may result from the release of antigens or from the induction of unknown immunological processes. They administered fractional doses of 100 to 150 R with a D1/2 of 3–4 mm at daily intervals; grenz rays were administered in four separate doses of 200 R at one to two week intervals ,. The authors recommend treatment at the earliest evidence of vesicular lesions and report good therapeutic results in 80% of cases treated with grenz rays …”

The latent herpes simplex virus.

“…A wide range of agents and procedures which are able to inhibit or suppress HSV replication in vivo or in vitro with varying degrees of success have emerged (with others being added to the list continually). Noteworthy among these are: several antimitotic chemicals (253), cancer cell extracts (2), human gamma globulin (1), trifluorothymidine (261), trifluorodeoxyuridine (124), lysine (123), iododeoxycytidine (144), iododeoxyuridine (IudR or IDU; 56, 138, 261), polyinosinic-cytidylic acid (179,231,260), interferon (126), ara-c (109), ara-c with L-asparaginase (34), arabinofuranosyladenine (138,200), phosphonoacetic acid (238), adenine arabinoside (45,199), rifamycin (181), ethyl ether (186), various photodynamic dyes (1C4), X irradiation (7,139), a vaccinia virus vaccine (72), a herpesvirus vaccine (127, 251), cryotherapy (19,83,104), and psychotherapy (25). However, HSV has proven to be resistant to glutathione (124), fl-methazone (124), pyran copolymers (231), lysozyme (124), 6-azauridine (138), and kethoxal (256).…”