eng Science and Education Publishing American Journal of Medical Case Reports 2374-216X 2016-10-28 4 9 321 323 10.12691/ajmcr-4-9-8 AJMCR2016498 article Fahidah Alenzi dr.al-enzi@hotmail.com 1 Abdulrahman Al Arfaj 2 Rheumatology -King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre, Saudi Arabia College of medicine, Rheumatology section, King Saud University Hospital, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Systemic lupus erythematosus and systemic sclerosis reduce the body ability to fight infections. Although varicella zoster virus (VZV) infections are common in these diseases due to poor cellular immunity, VZV-related strokes are rare. When stroke does occur, it may be due to direct infection of the cerebral arteries, leading to a spectrum of both inflammatory and non-inflammatory pathological changes, including thrombosis. This case report is the first from the Middle East to describe a patient who developed stroke associated with herpes zoster ophthalmicus. http://pubs.sciepub.com/ajmcr/4/9/8/ajmcr-4-9-8.pdf varicella zoster stroke systematic lupus erythematosus