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Herpes

What is it?
Genital herpes is caused by the herpes simplex virus (HSV).

There are two types of HSV: type 1 and type 2. Both types can cause genital herpes, however type 1 tends to have milder symptoms and is more often associated with cold sores around the mouth. Both types of HSV can also affect the eyes and the anal area.

Once you have the virus, it lies dormant and can reappear at any time.

What causes it?

• The herpes virus is passed on through direct skin contact with an infected person.
• It's most infectious when blisters are visible, though it can be also be passed on when they're not visible.
• It can be transfered from mouth to mouth, mouth to genitals and genitals to mouth.
• The most common ways of passing it on are kissing and vaginal, anal or oral sex.
• The virus is most likely to reappear when you feel tired, ill or stressed, wear tight clothing or nylon underwear, have damage to the genitals or are having your period.

Who is at risk?
As with any sexually transmitted infection, the more sexually active you are, the higher your risk of catching genital herpes. Condoms can only protect you if there has been no skin-to-skin contact with the infected area.

Between 2000 and 2001, the number of men with genital herpes rose by 5%, the number of females with the infection rose by 6%.

What are the symptoms?
Symptoms can take days or months to appear - some people don't develop any symptoms at all. If you do, initial genital herpes symptoms can include:

• Aches, pains, swollen glands, fatigue and feverish flu-like symptoms
• Itching or tingling sensations around the genitals
• Outbreaks of small blisters, which burst and become painful sores. These can take a few weeks to heal up.

You're more likely to get further infections if you have herpes type 2, but symptoms should be milder as the body builds up its defences.

Diagnosis
You can get tested at your local sexual health or genito-urinary medicine (GUM) clinic. A nurse or doctor will:

• Examine the infected area
• Take a swab of that area
• Possibly take a urine sample

Samples will be sent to a laboratory to determine which type of herpes you have. The results should be back within a couple of weeks.

Treatment
There is currently no treatment that can completely rid the body of herpes. During a first outbreak, your GP may prescribe a course of tablets to help reduce the length and severity of the infection. To be effective, you must take these within 72 hours of the symptoms appearing.

In severe cases, where the infection keeps recurring, these tablets can sometimes be taken continuously. 

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