Herpetic Paronychia — An Occupational Hazard of Medical Personnel

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Abstract
HERPES simplex infection of the finger is unusual in the general population. Previous reports1 , 2 have emphasized its frequent occurrence in hospital personnel. This article summarizes five cases observed in physicians and nurses at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania within the past three years.The patients, 22 to 29 years of age, had extensive patient contact involving oropharyngeal care, four having had recent exposure to patients with known herpes stomatitis. All experienced marked pain at the site of the local lesion, which involved the index finger in three and the thumb in two patients. The distal phalanx was erythematous . . .