Genital herpes

Genital herpes

What is genital herpes?

A sexually transmitted disease caused by the herpes virus.

Overview

Genital herpes is a disease that remains in the body. Blisters appear in the genital area, which become sore after a while and cause severe pain, but heal slowly. The disease is usually manifested by stress etc. under the influence of factors again and again, although in a milder form than the first time.

Causes and mechanisms


The virus enters the mucous membrane and skin of the genitals through microscopic traumatic cracks and openings (microscopic trauma is common in genital warts), where it multiplies and spreads to the surrounding tissues. Groups of blisters appear on the infected area, which later become covered with crusts. A distinction is made between Herpes Simplex Virus 1 (HSV-1) and Herpes Simplex Virus 2 (HSV-2) virus types. HSV-1 occurs more often on the mucous membranes of the mouth and lips, which is also known colloquially as thrush, HSV-2 is mostly located in the genital area. Due to the peculiarities of the partner’s sexual practices, HSV-1 also occurs more often on the genitals. The virus remains in the infected body despite treatment. The virus remains in the plexuses of the nerve roots of the spinal cord, from where it is reactivated under favorable conditions (stress, cold, accompanying inflammations, trauma, ultraviolet radiation, etc.) causing the disease to recur. Primary infection of a pregnant woman can be dangerous to the fetus, causing intrauterine death or severe malformations. However, the fetus is not always infected, the possibility of infection is 10-15% in the case of primary infection, especially if the mother was infected in the early stages of pregnancy. The newborn can also be infected during childbirth if the mother has signs of an active disease, i.e. while the rash is present. In this case, the newborn is at risk of brain inflammation and damage to the central nervous system.

Symptoms


Usually the first episode of the disease is the most pronounced and lasts longer (~20 days). There is fever, muscle pain.
Reddened, painful areas appear on the external genitalia, on which there are blisters located in groups.
Primary illness may be accompanied by cervical inflammation, which may result in discharge of a whitish watery discharge. Urinating can be painful. Inguinal lymph nodes may be enlarged.
Recurrent genital herpes usually progresses with fewer rash elements.

No fever and no general symptoms. Before the formation of blisters, there may be itching, a feeling of itching. Later crusts form. The healing process usually takes 10 days. During the first 4 days, the excretion of the virus and the possibility of transmitting the infection to the partner is the greatest.

Sometimes genital herpes can have an atypical course. There may be redness and cracking of the mucous membrane, and neither the patient nor the doctor may be aware of the disease. Such a rash element is also contagious

Diagnosis, i.e. what tests may be done and why


The disease is usually diagnosed based on complaints and observation.

Since antibodies (defense cells against the virus) are produced in the body against the virus, a blood test is taken to determine the antibodies, if necessary. IgM antibodies indicate recent infection, IgG antibodies indicate previous illness and viral load.

It is also possible to take a direct seed of the virus from inside the blister and detect the virus by DNA analysis, but in most cases this is not necessary if the disease picture is clearly recognizable to the doctor.

Treatment options


For acute primary genital herpes, oral antiviral drugs are used to shorten the duration of the disease and limit the spread of the disease.

Since genital herpes often causes severe and sharp pain, pain-relieving tablets can be used. It is also possible to anesthetize the affected area with a local pain reliever.


It is not possible to remove the virus from the body. It remains for life.

Prevention


Using a condom helps prevent the disease.