Labial herpes

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Generality

As the name implies, cold sores (herpes labialis) is an infectious disease that usually occurs on the lips.

This particular type of herpes is caused by a viral strain called herpes simplex (usually type one). Sometimes cold sores infection can cause manifestations on the cheeks and palate.

Symptoms

To learn more: Symptoms Herpes labialis

The symptoms of the disease are characteristic and united by the appearance of annoying and painful vesicles that often lead to socially incompatible attitudes due to the strong stimulus to scratch the affected air.

The appearance of the typical and very unpleasant bubbles around the lips is preceded by a feeling of warmth and tension, clearly perceptible by those who have already been affected by the disease. The early recognition of these symptoms allows the subject to intervene early limiting the eruption through the application of special ointments based on zinc and / or heparin.

If no action is taken within a few hours, some annoying and often painful bladders filled with liquid start to develop in the area where the tingling sensation is felt. These bubbles, real reservoirs of viruses, tend to dry up and crystallize spontaneously within a week.

During this period the risk of infecting another person through direct contact (kiss, sexual intercourse) increases considerably. In particular, the maximum risk of infection is when the vesicles open leaving the herpes viruses out (around the fourth fifth day).

Cold sores should not be confused with mouth ulcers, small non-contagious bubbles that appear in the mouth or tongue due to other problems (stress, food intolerance, abuse of some drugs, wounds caused by accidental mastication of the mucosa)

Causes

The cold sore infection normally coincides with strong stresses that can involve the body or the mind. In these periods one is more exposed not only to cold sores but also to many other diseases such as fever or a common cold. Stress, whatever its nature, actually weakens the body's immune defenses.

Once affected by cold sores, the viruses responsible for the disease go into hiding in nerve endings where they can remain silent (without giving manifestations) for the rest of life.

Unfortunately it often happens that the infection returns to manifest itself as a result of a very intense work (both physical and mental), of an indigestion, of an excessive exposure to sunlight, as a consequence of other diseases or of the prolonged intake of some drugs . Hormonal alterations related to pregnancy or the menstrual cycle can also promote the action of herpes viruses.

The spread of the virus to other parts of the body such as the eyes or genitals is rather difficult but possible. As an example, there are very few possibilities that herpes labialis infection is transmitted to the genital area during a shower using water as a transmission vehicle.

For the same reason it is difficult to pass on the infection to other people through the common use of contaminated objects such as sheets or towels. However, since these are possible vehicles of infection, it is good to pay attention to the respect of these elementary hygiene rules.