Two Cases of Herpes Gladiatorum Identified in a Korean Middle-School Wrestling Team: A Case Report.

Herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) infection is very common worldwide, with an estimate of up to two-thirds of the population aged < 50 years infected with HSV-1. Herpes gladiatorum is a skin infection caused by HSV-1, which affects wrestlers and other athletes in close-contact sports. We aimed to report two cases of herpes gladiatorum that were previously unreported in Korea. Notably, two 15-year-old boys who were on the same middle-school wrestling team were admitted sequentially because of vesicles predominant on the right side of their faces. Thorough physical examination, epidemiological linking, and proper laboratory investigations, including HSV-1 specific real-time polymerase chain reaction, led to the diagnosis of herpes gladiatorum, although a different diagnosis was proposed initially for the first patient. Both patients were adequately treated for herpes gladiatorum with a 10-15-day course of acyclovir and underwent an uneventful recovery. We hope that this case report will alert clinicians who encounter similar cases in the future.