The blisters break and leave painful sores that may take a week or more to heal. People who experience an initial outbreak of herpes can have repeated outbreaks, especially if they are infected with HSV Repeat outbreaks are usually shorter and less severe than the first outbreak. Although the infection stays in the body for the rest of your life, the number of outbreaks may decrease over time.
You should be examined by your doctor if you notice any of these symptoms or if your partner has an STD or symptoms of an STD. STD symptoms can include an unusual sore, a smelly genital discharge, burning when urinating, or for women bleeding between periods. Your healthcare provider may diagnose genital herpes by simply looking at your symptoms. Providers can also take a sample from the sore s and test it.
In certain situations, a blood test may be used to look for herpes antibodies. Have an honest and open talk with your health care provider and ask whether you should be tested for herpes or other STDs. Please note: A herpes blood test can help determine if you have herpes infection.
It cannot tell you who gave you the infection or how long you have been infected. There is no cure for herpes. However, there are medicines that can prevent or shorten outbreaks. One of these anti-herpes medicines can be taken daily, and makes it less likely that you will pass the infection on to your sex partner s. Genital herpes can cause painful genital sores and can be severe in people with suppressed immune systems. If you touch your sores or the fluids from the sores, you may transfer herpes to another part of your body, such as your eyes.
Do not touch the sores or fluids to avoid spreading herpes to another part of your body. If you do touch the sores or fluids, immediately wash your hands thoroughly to help avoid spreading your infection. If you are pregnant, there can be problems for you and your developing fetus, or newborn baby. How could genital herpes affect my baby?
Herpes simplex virus HSV , also known as genital herpes, is most likely to be spread when an infected person is having an outbreak, but it can also be transmitted without any symptoms being present. Medications can help reduce your symptoms, speed up the healing of an outbreak and make you less contagious.
If you know you have genital herpes before becoming pregnant, your physician will monitor your condition throughout your pregnancy. If you have an active outbreak at the time of delivery, cesarean section C-section may be recommended. In fact, some people with the disease do not experience any symptoms for extended periods. They may still shed the virus, though, even when no symptoms are present. HSV I commonly causes oral herpes , or cold sores.
This virus can show up as an upper respiratory tract infection during early childhood. HSV II is the cause of most cases of genital herpes. Clinicians cannot tell the difference between the two types by physical examination alone, but there are differences between the two viruses.
This diagnosis can be helpful in establishing a health care plan. You can catch genital herpes by having vaginal, anal or oral sex with someone who has the disease. The herpes simplex viruses are latent, meaning they can live in the body without causing symptoms. After the initial infection, the virus gets into the nerve roots and spreads to the sensory nerve ganglia, the junctions where nerves from different parts of the body come together.
For the genital area, the ganglia are adjacent to the spinal cord in the lower back. For orofacial herpes cold sores , the ganglia are located behind the cheek bone.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , approximately 40 million to 50 million adults in the United States have genital herpes. HSV II infection is more common in women and in people who have had more than five sexual partners. While some people with genital herpes will never have any symptoms, other people can develop symptoms within a few weeks of being infected. Most people notice a group or cluster of blisters or ulcers lesions.
These lesions burn and can be painful. They can appear on the buttocks, anus or thighs, on the vulva or vagina in women, and on the penis or scrotum in men. Often, before the lesions appear, patients describe a prodrome, characterized by a tingling or burning sensation in the area where the lesions will develop that can be noticed during urination, along with itching or discomfort in the genital area. The symptoms of genital herpes often go away and come back as recurring outbreaks.
For most people, the first outbreak is the worst, and can last from two to three weeks. Future flare-ups are often less severe and do not last as long. Still, some people shed the virus regularly. The following triggers can make outbreaks more likely to occur:. Recurrent genital herpes is most common in the first year after the initial infection and decreases as time goes on.
Type-specific virologic tests can be used for diagnosing genital herpes when a person has recurrent symptoms or lesion without a confirmatory NAAT, culture result, or has a partner with genital herpes. Both virologic tests and type-specific serologic tests should be available in clinical settings serving patients with, or at risk for, sexually transmitted infections. If confirmatory tests are unavailable, patients should be counseled about the limitations of available testing before serologic testing.
Healthcare providers should also be aware that false-positive results occur. In instances of suspected recent acquisition, serologic testing within 12 weeks after acquisition may be associated with false negative test results. HSV-1 serologic testing does not distinguish between oral and genital infection, and typically should not be performed for diagnosing genital HSV-1 infection. Diagnosis of genital HSV-1 infection is confirmed by virologic tests from lesions. Patients who are at higher risk of infection e.
There is no cure for herpes. Antiviral medications can, however, prevent or shorten outbreaks during the period of time the person takes the medication. There is currently no commercially available vaccine that is protective against genital herpes infection.
Candidate vaccines are in clinical trials. Correct and consistent use of latex condoms can reduce, but not eliminate, the risk of transmitting or acquiring genital herpes because herpes virus shedding can occur in areas that are not covered by a condom. The surest way to avoid transmission of STDs, including genital herpes, is to abstain from sexual contact, or to be in a long-term mutually monogamous relationship with a partner who has been tested for STDs and is known to be uninfected.
Persons with herpes should abstain from sexual activity with partners when herpes lesions or other symptoms of herpes are present. It is important to know that even if a person does not have any symptoms, he or she can still infect sex partners.
Sex partners of infected persons should be advised that they may become infected and they should use condoms to reduce the risk. Sex partners can seek testing to determine if they are infected with HSV. Daily treatment with valacyclovir decreases the rate of HSV-2 transmission in discordant, heterosexual couples in which the source partner has a history of genital HSV-2 infection. Counseling those with genital herpes, as well as their sex partners, is critical. It can help patients cope with the infection and prevent further spread into the community.
More information is available at www. Sexually transmitted infections among US women and men: Prevalence and incidence estimates, Sex Transm Dis ; in press. Prevalence of herpes simplex virus type 1 and type 2 in persons aged 14— United States, — Trends in herpes simplex virus type 1 and type 2 seroprevalence in the United States. JAMA , Seroprevalence of herpes simplex virus types 1 and 2—United States, — However, having one type of HSV does not mean that an individual will acquire the other.
HSV-1 and HSV-2 are genetically similar , so the immune system of a person with herpes will produce antibodies to fight one infectious agent and potentially reduce the risk of contracting the other.
HSV-1 causes oral herpes. It is usually transmissible through kissing or the sharing of drinks and utensils. Most people with HSV-1 acquired it during childhood through nonsexual contact and by kissing family members and friends.
Less commonly, HSV-1 may transmit to the mucous membranes of the genital area through mouth-to-genital contact during oral sex. Learn more about the link between kissing and herpes here. People with the virus may display no symptoms or very mild symptoms, or they may mistake their symptoms for those of a different illness. However, the virus remains transmissible, even if the symptoms are not obvious. Once transmission occurs, any initial symptoms will usually appear within 2 weeks of exposure, according to the ASHA.
This is known as the primary outbreak. It may be more severe and last longer than future outbreaks. However, symptoms may take several days, weeks, or months to develop after a person acquires the infectious agent. Learn more about how to recognize herpes symptoms here. Therefore, it is important to reduce the risk of transmission. Looking for physical symptoms of herpes infections is not always effective. Also, using a condom or dental dam does not guarantee prevention, as a barrier cannot cover all areas that herpes can use to pass from the skin to a mucous membrane.