HERPES

Sexual Transmission

Dear Dr. Rob:

I’ve had itching right inside the vaginal opening and I can feel some small bumps right inside the opening. My boyfriend recently discovered that his last partner has herpes, although he has not been tested for it yet and doesn’t know if he carries the virus. These are the only symptoms that I’ve noticed that could possibly be herpes. I’ve read some online and thought maybe I have Bacterial Vaginosis (BV) or some sort of vaginal infection instead of herpes. I was wondering if I had anything to worry about and your thoughts on the matter.
Thank you,
Nikki

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Dr. Rob’s Response:

Dear Nikki:

If your partner has been in contact with herpes and you have lesions, I would strongly suggest avoiding sex and both having the Herpes Select Test done in the
next 1 – 2 months to prove once and for all, what if anything, you may have contracted.

Herpes Type 1 and Herpes Type 2 differ in terms of where they most likely occur. Herpes Type 1 occurs predominantly as cold sores in the mouth area but 20% of Herpes Type 1 occurs as genital herpes because of oral sexual transmission or sexual transmission with one partner having Herpes Type 1.  The difference is that Herpes Type 1 in the vaginal area is less likely to cause as many outbreaks as Herpes type 2, although they can be just as painful.  They, too, can be somewhat suppressed by a drug called Valcyclovir and calmed by an amino acid called Lysine, 1 gram twice a day.  I hope this has answered your question. 

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