Prospective double-blind evaluation of topical adenine arabinoside in male herpes progenitalis.

Thirty-four virologically proven episodes of herpes progenitalis in 32 men were treated in a prospective double-blind study with either adenine arabinoside ointment or an identical-appearing placebo for 7 days. Clinical evaluation and quantitative virological studies were done on days 1, 3, and 8. There was a highly significant correlation between clinical response and quantitative virology. There was no difference in clinical or virological response between drug and control groups. Primary attacks tended to have higher viral excretion over the period of observation. The level of complement-fixing antibody to herpes simplex virus type 2(<1:16 versus >/=1:16) in patients with recurrent disease did not appear to alter the course of viral excretion.