Genital herpes is a sexually transmitted disease caused by the herpes simplex virus (HSV) and spreads primarily through sexual contact. It’s important to note that even after you’re infected, the virus may remain dormant and may reactivate many times throughout a single year. The disease itself has a handful of uncomfortable symptoms, including itching, sores, and pain in and around your genital area. However, even if you’re infected, you may not display any symptoms at all. Even if you don’t show symptoms, though, you can still be contagious. To help prevent the spread of herpes and other STDs, it’s always a good idea to use a condom during sexual intercourse.
With herpes, there are a couple of factors to keep an eye out for that may indicate if you’re at risk of contracting the disease. These are the following:
There are two different types of virus infections that can cause herpes , herpes type 1 or herpes type 2 virus.
The virus can’t live long outside the body, which means it’s extremely difficult to get the infection via contact with things such as toilet seats or other objects used by infected persons.
If you have herpes, chances are you may not even realize it right away. In many cases, you may have the virus, but none of the symptoms, particularly because symptoms associated with herpes are mild. However, if you do have symptoms, they may include the following:
During outbreaks, you may also exhibit flu-like symptoms, including muscle aches, fever, swollen lymph nodes, and more.
If you think you may have genital herpes, schedule a visit with your doctor. During a physical exam, your doctor will perform a physical exam and order lab tests, including the following:
If you’re diagnosed with genital herpes, your doctor may prescribe a variety of different medications to help treat the condition. Fortunately, many prescription antiviral drugs may help alleviate the following:
Some of the more common medications prescribed to treat genital herpes include:
All patients with first episode of infection should get anti-viral medications from their doctor. Don’t take your partner’s medications or take any medications not prescribed by your doctor. Recommended regimens for first time genital herpes infection geneally include one of the medications below for 7-10 days.
Some patients may need supression therapy for herpes. Supression therapy reduce the recurrence by 70%-80%. Some of the commonly presribed regimes include:
Some patients may have severe infection requiring hospitalisation and intravenous antiviral therapy. The dosing is based on an individual symptoms and regimens are different in sepcial cases like pregnancy, HIV, kids.
Unfortunately, there is no cure for herpes, and the virus may remain in your body indefinitely, even with treatment. However, over time, the frequency of outbreaks usually decreases.
Even with treatment, genital herpes may result in the following complications:
https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/herpes-simplex-virus
https://www.cdc.gov/std/tg2015/herpes.htm
https://www.cdc.gov/std/herpes/stdfact-herpes-detailed.htm