Genital Herpes

GENITAL HERPES

Welcome back to rejoining the health articles presented by the KMC Clinic, this week topic will continue to discuss the Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STD) series. Last week we discussed Gonorrhea and this week we will discuss Genital Herpes.

Genital herpes is a common and highly contagious infection usually spread through sex. This infection is usually caused by the herpes simplex virus-2 (HSV-2) or the herpes simplex virus-1 (HSV-1), the virus usually responsible for cold sores.

Causes

Two types of herpes simplex virus infections can cause genital herpes:

• HSV-1. This is the type that usually causes cold sores or fever blisters around your mouth. HSV-1 is often spread through skin-to-skin contact, though it can be spread to your genital area during oral sex. Recurrences are much less frequent than they are with HSV-2 infection.
• HSV-2. This is the type that commonly causes genital herpes. The virus spreads through sexual contact and skin-to-skin contact. HSV-2 is very common and highly contagious, whether or not you have an open sore.

Because the virus dies quickly outside of the body, it's nearly impossible to get the infection through contact with toilets, towels or other objects used by an infected person.

Symptoms

When present, symptoms may begin about two to 12 days after exposure to the virus. If you experience symptoms of genital herpes, they may include:

• Pain or itching. You may experience pain and tenderness in your genital area until the infection clears.
• Small red bumps or tiny white blisters. These may appear a few days to a few weeks after infection.
• Ulcers. These may form when blisters rupture and ooze or bleed. Ulcers may make it painful to urinate.
• Scabs. Skin will crust over and form scabs as ulcers heal.

During an initial outbreak, you may have flu-like signs and symptoms such as swollen lymph nodes in your groin, headache, muscle aches and fever.

Prevention

The suggestions for preventing genital herpes are the same as those for preventing other sexually transmitted infections: Abstain from sexual activity or limit sexual contact to only one person who is infection-free. Short of that, you can:

• Use, or have your partner use, a latex condom during every sexual contact
• Avoid intercourse if either partner has an outbreak of herpes in the genital area or anywhere else

Pregnancy precautions

If you're pregnant and know you have genital herpes, tell your doctor. If you think you might have genital herpes, ask to be tested for it.

Your doctor may recommend that you start taking herpes antiviral medications late in pregnancy to try to prevent an outbreak around the time of delivery. If you're having an outbreak when you go into labor, your doctor will probably suggest a cesarean section to reduce the risk of passing the virus to your baby.

Treatment the first time you have genital herpes

You may be prescribed:

• • • • antiviral medicine to stop the symptoms getting worse – you need to start taking this within 5 days of the symptoms appearing
      • cream for the pain

If you've had symptoms for more than 5 days before you go to a sexual health clinic, you can still get tested to find out the cause.

Treatment if the blisters come back

Go to your GP or a sexual health clinic if you've been diagnosed with genital herpes and need treatment for an outbreak.

Antiviral medicine may help shorten an outbreak by 1 or 2 days, if you start taking it as soon as symptoms appear. But outbreaks usually settle by themselves, so you may not need treatment.

Recurrent outbreaks are usually milder than the first episode of genital herpes. Over time, outbreaks tend to happen less often and be less severe. Some people never have outbreaks.

Some people who have more than 6 outbreaks in a year may benefit from taking antiviral medicine for 6 to 12 months. If you still have outbreaks of genital herpes during this time, you may be referred to a specialist.

How to deal with outbreaks yourself

If you've been diagnosed with genital herpes and you're having an outbreak:

Do

• keep the area clean using plain or salt water to prevent blisters becoming infected
• apply an ice pack wrapped in a flannel to soothe pain
• apply petroleum jelly (such as Vaseline) or painkilling cream (such as 5% lidocaine) to reduce pain when you pee
• wash your hands before and after applying cream or jelly
• pee while pouring water over your genitals to ease the pain

Don't

• do not wear tight clothing that may irritate blisters or sores
• do not put ice directly on the skin
• do not touch your blisters or sores unless you're applying cream
• do not have vaginal, anal or oral sex until the sores have gone away

Source :

1. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/genital-herpes/
2. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/genital-herpes/symptoms-causes/syc-20356161
3. https://www.cdc.gov/std/herpes/stdfact-herpes.htm
4. https://www.webmd.com/genital-herpes/default.htm