Herpes simplex I & II

[iguanasdefuego.livejournal.com]

Hi guys, quick question about my favorite topic and yours, Herpes.
So I obviously have simplex I because I get cold sores once in a blue moon. I had one a while ago and my boyfriend was very uncomfortable with the idea of getting it from me. I know I can transmit it to him by kissing and by oral sex, but would he get the sores on his genitals? Some people have said it travels to where people most often get them, but if you can get them in your nose and stuff...can't you get simplex I sores on your genitals? Or is that strictly limited to simplex II? I'm so very perplexed. Thanks gals (and guys)!

Comments

[tequila-love.livejournal.com]

You can get type 1 on your genitals, but it's harder to get on your genitals because that's not where the virus is "supposed" to attach itself. I wouldn't worry about it unless you have a sore present, then obviously you should refrain from engaging in oral sex and kissing. :)

[jennifer0246.livejournal.com]

http://www.vaginapagina.com/index.php?title=Herpes_%28HSV-1/HSV-2%29 is a link to the vulvapedia entry on herpes; i think it answers all of your questions. http://www.ashastd.org/herpes/herpes_overview.cfm is also a great site to check out anything STI related.

[luvu4legos2.livejournal.com]

I know someone who got the virus on their genitals from a cold sore in their partners mouth. so its possible.

[sandi1743.livejournal.com]

totally possible to get I or II either place. a few studies reciently have shown that there is actually a high # of people with Type I genitally then thought before now that they usually PCR test the sores.

[frolicnaked.livejournal.com]

PCR test? I'm not familiar with what that is. Could you explain it so I recognize it when I see it again? Thanks!

[sandi1743.livejournal.com]

When someone comes in with the presentation of skin lesions - and they fresh many places test the leasion directly for Herpes - and then if positive, the typing of either one or two can be done. this is often useful when a person is dealing with the primary infect - the specific IgG blood test will show up negitive, but if the PCR (also ref'ed to as a culture of the lesion as the sample taken is often times cultured then PCR'ed) is positive we know that the person has a primaryt infection. This is considered by many in the herpes research field to be the gold standard of primary dx. the culture PCr can also be done later on when it is not the primary infection. However, the one issues with this method, the lesions has to be less then 48 hours old as after being exposed the virus dies quickly and it is harder to get a good acurate dx of herpes via this method.

[hardtogetover.livejournal.com]

Yes, you can give it to him genitally through oral sex. Even if you don't have a visible sore, you could still be shedding and pass it on. The only way he can avoid getting it genitally is by using a condom during oral or if he already has hsv1 elsewhere. (You can only get each type in one place otherwise people with it would have it everywhere).

[pozgroups.livejournal.com]

I got this from a blog at pozgroup.com. Hope it can be helpful:

Acquisition of one type is more difficult-though certainly possible-if you already have the other type. This is because either type, contracted orally or genitally, causes the body to produce antibodies, some of which are active against both HSV-1 and 2. This acquired immune response gives some limited protection if the body encounters a second type. When a person with a prior HSV infection does contract the second type, the first episode tends to be less severe than when no prior antibodies are present.

On a practical level, this means oral HSV-1 is often the most easily acquired herpes infection. Usually the first herpes simplex virus that people encounter, oral HSV-1, is typically spread simply by the kind of social kiss that a relative gives a child. Because children have no prior infection with any HSV type, they have no immune defense against the virus.

By the time they're teenagers or young adults, about 50% of Americans have HSV-1 antibodies in their blood. By the time they are over age 50, some 80-90% of Americans have HSV-1 antibodies.

By comparison, almost all HSV-2 is encountered after childhood, when people become sexually active. Those who have a prior infection with HSV-1 have an acquired immune response that lowers - though certainly doesn't eliminate-the risk of acquiring HSV-2. According to one study (Mertz, Annals of Internal Medicine,1992), previous oral HSV-1 infection reduces the acquisition of subsequent HSV-2 infection by 40%.

A prior infection with oral HSV-1 lowers the risk of acquiring genital HSV-1 even further. Studies show that genital HSV-1 infections almost always occur in people who have no prior infection with HSV of either type.




For more information, please check:

http://www.pozgroup.com/blogs/blog_messages?blog_id=40680#18