Herpes Doctor

Herpes and Cheating and Physical Violence

Amy Banks — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 10:50:37 +0000

Anonymous internet comments can be a scary place to be at the best of times, but I just had to speak up about seeing (once again) comments on a Rihanna news story implying that Rihanna may have deserved to be beaten by Chris Brown because she MAY have cheated on him and MAY have passed the herpes virus on to him.

Even if that were true, it's terrifying to think that even the belief that your partner has cheated on you (as terrible as it might feel) constitutes grounds for physically attacking another human being like that.

It also frightens me to think that every person who discovers they have herpes is open to suspicion of cheating (as if you don't have enough problems to worry about!). Let me outline the other possibilites one more time:

1. You already had herpes from a previous relationship (not cheating), and the symptoms just appeared now.

2. Your partner is actually the one that gave you herpes, although they may be asymptomic, or were asymptomic at the time they passed it on to you.

3. If your partner (or previous partners) had oral cold sores (not necessarily genital herpes) they could have passed HSV-1 on to your genital area.

In the end, there are so many possibilities that I think it's pointless to try to assign blame in a specific way, unless someone is willfully dishonest. We all know that sex poses risks, and we all (hopefully) know that the best way to protect yourself is with condoms, medication, and common sense (ie. avoiding contact with big open lesions).

Kissing as trigger to cold sores?

laylala — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 23:58:24 +0000

Hi!

I've been with my new boyfriend for about 4 months now. We don't get to see each other quite a lot since we are living abroad from each other, but nearly every time after I've seen him, I get a herpes simplex (cold sore) outbreak. I've always had the virus, got it from my mom as a child, so that's no surprise to me.

It does, however, make me wonder why I always get it after being with him. He doesn't have the virus, neither labial nor genital and as far as we know I haven't passed it on to him. Could it be that kissing works as a trigger for me and that I can get cold sores from intense kissing sessions? I do have to add that I have a serious addiction to lipbalm and chapstick, so my lips are usually very dry without those. (I know, it's not good, but I can't help it) Kissing obviously makes my lips drier, so that's my current train of thought: That my lips are becoming extremely chapped from the kissing which 'activates' the virus and increases the chance of having a breakout.

Does this make sense at all? Or should I be looking at other suggestions?

Get Informed – Herpes and Pregnancy

Amy Banks — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 10:57:24 +0000

Wondering about the dangers of herpes and pregnancy? If you're in this position, it's of the utmost importance that you talk to your ob-gyn asap – if left untreated, neonatal herpes can result in death for a staggering 60 of untreated infants. However, with the proper care and precautions, you can help to ensure your newborn's safety.

Here are some more findings to think about from an article originally published in the New England Journal of Medicine last month:

If you've already had and been treated for herpes before pregnancy, the risks are much lower (less than 1 percent), that you will pass the virus on to the fetus (you'll still want to tell your doc, though). However, that number sky-rockets to between 25-50 percent if the mother contracts the virus during pregnancy. This means that if you (the mother) don't have herpes but your partner does, your doctor may counsel you against having sex at all during the pregnancy.

Researchers believe that more evidence-based directives are needed to help mothers with herpes know exactly what they need to do to lower the risk factor for their babies. For instance, more research needs to be done on the efficacy and safety of taking antiviral meds during pregnancy.

Tips for Having "The Talk" With a New Partner

Amy Banks — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 11:17:06 +0000

Dr. Yvonne K. Fulbright, sex educator and author, has provided a list of helpful tips for telling a new partner that you have an STI. I think her attitude is very realistic, and I appreciate that she emphasizes the notion that having as much knowledge as possible about your condition will make it easier to talk about it and deal with it once you're in a relationship.

Her tips, below:

1. Plan to share in an emotionally neutral environment and not in the heat of passion.

2. Deliver the news without sounding anxious, panicky or stressed. This will just make things sound worse than they are. Aim to sound calm and confident.

3. Be open-minded and ask that your potential partner be the same.

4. Be prepared to correct myths or calm fears.

5. Highlight the fact that some viruses get a bad rap. Oral herpes, genital herpes, shingles and chicken pox, for example, are all due to having acquired a virus that remains in one’s nervous system permanently. Yet genital herpes is stigmatized much more often than your common cold sore or chicken pox outbreak.

6. If things are going well, devise a game plan on how you’ll protect yourselves from here on out. This includes tons of communication, trust, care and protection.

It also requires encouraging abstinence during outbreaks. While using condoms minimizes the risks, with herpes and HPV (a.k.a. genital warts), it’s still possible to transmit the virus via skin on skin contact.

7. If things don’t go well, remember that, while it feels very personal, it’s quite impersonal for somebody to not take on a lover because of the sexual and reproductive health risks involved. Along the same vein, don’t interpret rejection as meaning that you’re a bad person. You’re not. You did the right thing.

She also makes a note that it's important to keep track of your outbreaks and potential triggers, in order to gain some control over the disease (ie. you may learn how to accurately predict and prevent outbreaks).

Eyebrow Waxing and Herpes Keratitis

Amy Banks — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 18:33:43 +0000

The Midwest United States is seeing a rise in reported cases of eye herpes (keratitis), directly related to related to unhygenic waxing practices. These likely occurred because the esthetician redipped a stick that had been applied to the lip area that was infected with cold sores (HSV-1), which were then transferred to the eye area during an eyebrow wax.

If you visit a waxing salon, keep a careful watch on the practioner to make sure they use a new stick for every dip into the wax – no matter which area they're waxing. Redipping can also lead to other fungal and bacterial infections.

Shingles Not a One-Time Thing

Amy Banks — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:55:23 +0000

More not-so-great news for shingles sufferers (in the wake of finding out last month that having shingles increases your risk of stroke) – Although it was previously believed that shingles usually occurs only once, a US study spanning five years has found that once you've had one episode, you have a one in three chance of being hit again – meaning that recurrences are much more common than originally thought. What's more, many of the patients who suffered recurrences did not have compromised immune systems or other obvious risk factors.

The study was funded by Merck, makers of the shingles vaccine Zostavax.

Antidepressants Can Help Fight Herpes and Shingles

Amy Banks — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 09:44:36 +0000

A new study conducted by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, has confirmed the theory that antidepressant medication helps inhibit herpes and shingles outbreaks.

The study's authors found that the drugs affected the ability of a specific enzyme and protein to interact, both of which the virus needs in order to replicate and infect host cells. In doing so, the drug helps stop current outbreaks as well as prevent future ones.

Cheaper Generic Valtrex Coming Up?

Amy Banks — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 10:31:23 +0000

(Probably) good news for those of us forking over a fortune for the very effective but very pricey antiviral med Valtrex (which is the brand name for the drug valacyclovir) – it's currently made by pharma company GlaxoSmithKline, but their exclusivity rights for the drug expire this December, leaving them open for competition from companies such as Teva, Mylan, Ranbaxy are planning generic versions of valacyclovir. Hopefully this will mean a lower price tag.

Get Informed – Herpes, HPV, and Cervical Cancer

Amy Banks — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 10:26:26 +0000

Women, take note: statistically speaking, having genitals herpes puts you at a higher risk for cervical cancer. However, it's not that herpes itself increases the risk, it's when it's in conjunction with another common STI, HPV.

So what does this mean for you? Continue going for regular (ie. annual) pap smears to find out if you have HPV and make sure your results are normal. And just because everything's a-ok one year doesn't mean you should skip the next – HPV often "hides" for years before being detected or causing any problems.

Hate the Herpes, Not the Herpes Sufferer!

Amy Banks — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 12:17:13 +0000

There's a great interview on The Huffington Post today with Dr. Adina Nack, professor of medical sociology and sexual studies, and author of the book, Damaged Goods? Women Living With Incurable Sexually Transmitted Diseases.

She's speaking in response to the recent news that Gardasil – previously thought of as a cervical cancer vaccine for girls only – has now been approved for boys, which sheds light on the fact that the vaccine is actually for the sexually transmitted disease, HPV. She also speaks about the importance of destigmatizing all STIs, and how focusing on the disease itself, instead of questions of morality, will help us find a more effective treatment. She says:

Through my website, I receive emails every week from those whose genital HPV and herpes infections have damaged not only their health but also their self esteem, their relationships, and their social reputations. Eliminating the shameful stigma of STIs could free millions of infected women and men from social and psychological traumas and harm public health. Viewing these kinds of infections as medical conditions would allow STI patients to focus on pursuing treatment options that not only allow them to manage their own symptoms but also make them less likely to infect others. Destigmatizing STIs may also increase the odds that a newly diagnosed person will disclose their sexual health status to their sexual partner. New social attitudes and better public health education about STIs can prepare Americans to support future STI/HIV vaccination programs.