Comparison of shell vial culture and the suspension-infection method for the rapid detection of herpes simplex viruses.

Shell vial culture (SVC) and suspension-infection (SI) (simultaneous seeding of culture cells and inoculation of sample) were compared for the detection of herpes simplex virus (HSV) in clinical specimens. Conventional culture methods using mink lung cells or the Vero cell subline C1008 were also compared with each other and with SVC and SI. Additionally, SVC and SI were compared for quantitative determination of HSV infectivity. Compared with conventional culture with mink lung cells, culture with C1008 cells was 98% sensitive, and the sensitivities of SVC and SI were 94% and 93%, respectively. In quantitative determinations, titers of infectious HSV in positive clinical samples were a mean of five- to six-fold higher, as detected in SVC compared with SI titrations. For quantitative detection of infectious HSV, SVC was more sensitive than SI; however, for diagnosis of HSV in clinical specimens, no significant difference was observed between SI and SVC.