After surgery involving cranial nerves and more generally the central nervous system, nonbacterial meningitis should raise suspicion of herpes simplex virus type 1 reactivation. No time should be wasted in diagnosis and treatment; therefore, a polymerase chain reaction testing on cerebrospinal fluid should be systematic in this situation, without neglecting to consider other differential diagnoses.
Keywords: acoustic neuroma; case report; herpes simplex virus; herpetic encephalitis; vestibular schwannoma.
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