What is HSV · 5 min
HSV at a glance
The essentials about herpes simplex virus, with citable figures and without alarm.
Go to the newly diagnosed guide →-
Types
HSV-1 and HSV-2
- HSV-1: orofacial mostly, can be genital.
- HSV-2: primarily genital.
- WHO 2020: HSV-1 ≈ 67% under 50, HSV-2 ≈ 13%.
- Many people do not know they have it.
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Transmission
How it spreads
- Direct skin-to-skin contact.
- Possible without visible lesions (asymptomatic shedding).
- Incubation: 2 to 12 days.
- Higher risk during active outbreak.
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Symptoms
What an outbreak looks like
- Prodrome: tingling, itching, burning.
- Painful vesicles that break.
- Crusting and resolution within 7 to 14 days.
- First episode may bring fever and swollen nodes.
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Treatment
Antivirals that work
- Acyclovir, valacyclovir and famciclovir.
- Episodic: treat each outbreak.
- Suppressive: daily dose, reduces outbreaks and clinical transmission by about 48%.
- No treatment eliminates the virus permanently.
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Diagnosis
How it is confirmed
- PCR on active lesion: precise.
- Viral culture: historical standard.
- IgG serology: prior exposure, not outbreak.
- Ask your healthcare team before trusting forums.
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Triggers
What precipitates outbreaks
- Physical and emotional stress.
- Lack of sleep.
- Intense sun (orofacial).
- Menstruation, fever, other infections.
Three things that are not true
- 01
It is not a romantic sentence: stable couples, safe pregnancies and full sex lives exist with HSV.
- 02
It does not define who you are: it lives in hundreds of millions of bodies. Living with it is the norm.
- 03
You do not carry it alone: Mar the chat and the community are here to accompany.