Spinal cord haemorrhage following herpes zoster: a possible complication of warfarin therapy.

Haemorrhage is the most serious and common side-effect of warfarin therapy. Bleeding had commonly been observed in the gastrointestinal and genitourinary tracts as well as in the skin and subcutaneous tissue. Central nervous system bleeding has also been reported and has usually been associated with marked prolongation of the prothrombin time. Spinal cord haemorrhage has been infrequently observed. The patient reported here may represent a previously undescribed complication of herpes zoster infection with haemorrhage in the involved dorsal root ganglia. Possible mechanisms are discussed.