[Herpes zoster as cause of an epidemic spread of varicella and zoster in a children's hospital].

During infancy zoster is not so rare as generally stated. In this age group the infection seems often to be unrecognised, because commonly it produces little or atypical body reactions. In children the infectivity of zoster is more serious than in adults, but in the absence of antibodies, varicella develops. Therefore zoster has been considered as an immunologically modified form of varicella. In my own experience, one case of zoster caused epidemics of varicella and zoster in a paediatric hospital. The pathogenesis and epidemiology of the two diseases have been discussed.