The amount of new diseases is increasing every year and they are becoming more and more severe and advanced. To be exact, new cases do not occur, they are being discovered. However, there are diseases that have existed for many years and still exist without 100% cure. One of such problems is herpes, including all kinds of it.
So, what is herpes, how can one notice, treat, avoid it and, what is more important, how to live with it if you are infected?
To begin with, herpes is a viral disease. It is caused by the virus called “herpes simplex”. In accordance with the part of the body being infected, there exist several types of this ailment, such as:
- oral one – occurs on the face or mouth, leading to so called cold sores or just a sore throat;
- genital one – sometimes referred to just as “herpes”, seeming like having no symptoms at all or causing blisters resulting in little ulcers;
- eye herpes;
- brain form of herpes;
- newborn one;
- herpetic whitlow.
Speaking about the symptoms and signs of the disease, they are the following:
- painful urination (if it is genital type),
- flu symptoms, such as headaches, fever, lack of appetite, weakness etc.
According to the global research, between 60 and 90% of people all over the world have this virus. It depends on the socioeconomic situation in this or that country: the better the conditions, the lower the rate. Nevertheless, any person has relatively high risks of infecting. There are also several factors that will make you even more vulnerable:
- you are a female;
- you have a number of sex partners and do not use any protection, for example, condoms;
- your immune system is weakened;
- you are infected by some other sexually transmitted disease.
Now you know symptoms and risks of being infected by herpes; so, how can it be diagnosed?
Basically, a doctor can have a look at the sores and ask you about the symptoms. In cases of genital herpes, a sample is taken from the sore. If there are no sores, blood analysis is widely used.
Speaking about treatment, as it has already been mentioned, there is no absolute cure for this ailment and all doctors can do is to help you get rid of sores and prevent the spreading of the infection. You will be recommended some of these medicines: acyclovir, famciclovir, valacyclovir. They may be used in the form of pills or cream; in some severe cases injections are necessary.
Surely, it seems that there is nothing special about herpes, but there is no doubt that it is easier to prevent a disease than to treat it. There exist some recommendations how to avoid herpes:
- Do not use the same things as a person infected, such as towels, cups, clothes, cosmetics, etc. Such contacts will help the virus to spread;
- Avoid kissing and participating in any kinds of sex with an infected person who has an outbreak at the moment;
- Wash your hands carefully after contacts with your sores if you are infected and do not forget to apply the medicine on the sores;
- Be even more careful if you are on a family way to protect the unborn baby. Otherwise, you will have to take a medicine even during pregnancy.
If you have already been infected, be ready that you will have to live with this for the rest of your life, because the virus goes on living in a person’s nerve cells. To protect your family, follow the above mentioned recommendations. Besides, remember, that you are likely to have an outbreak in some situations, such as:
- being ill,
- during menstruation,
- stressful period.
The number of outbreaks is believed to reduce after some time because a person’s body starts to produce antibodies.
Now you know more about herpes and everything connected with it. Although it seems that there is nothing serious about herpes and people can live with it, still it is better to take care of your health and follow just some simple