Reviewed by:  Daniel Williams, MD

One in five people have genital herpes

Genital Herpes Affects Millions of Americans

A national study shows that genital herpes infection is more common in the United States than such diseases as asthma and diabetes, with an estimated 17% of people age 14-49 infected. While the number of people who continue to be infected actually seems to be dropping, a million people a year still contract the herpes virus. The infection affects twice as many women as men, due to male-to-female transmission of the virus being more likely than female-to-male transmission.

Treatment Is Available With Acyclovir

There is no cure for herpes, only treatment. You may be surprised to find out that an infected person may pass genital herpes on to his or her partner at any time, as the virus can be active on the skin surface without exhibiting signs or symptoms. According to one study, up to 70% of people with genital herpes acquired it from their partners when those partners showed no visible signs or symptoms of an outbreak.

Those who already have the virus – including the majority who aren’t even aware of it, because the infection has yet to manifest itself in ways dramatic enough to notice – can only use suppressive therapies to try to reduce the likelihood of transmission to partners, or can use antiviral oral drug Acyclovir to treat symptoms once an outbreak begins.  Learn more about Acyclovir FAQs by visiting this informative health article.

Ways to Prevent Herpes Infection

There are only three ways to prevent herpes, but only one of them is sure-fire.

1. Abstinence. This means NO contact at all. Many young people mistakenly believe that alternative practices that don’t include actual intercourse are therefore safe. The only 100% certain method of not contracting herpes, or any STD for that matter, is through abstinence. And you should definitely not engage in unprotected sex with a person whose medical history is not known to you.

2. Monogamy. The next best thing to abstinence is to be in a permanent or long-term, mutually exclusive partnership with someone who has been tested for herpes (as have you) and is guaranteed uninfected. But, human nature being what it is, we still have no control over the behavior of another human being, and people have been known to stray.

3. Use of a condom. Using a condom is another way to possibly avoid contracting herpes and other STDs. However, using a condom is no 100% guarantee that herpes will not be transmitted, as herpes is spread through skin-to-skin contact and the body may still be exposed to the partner’s herpes virus through contact with unprotected areas during sex. So the disease can still be transmitted.

Social Stigma of “Fever Blisters”

“Cold Sores” are usually due to Herpes Virus, sometimes exhibited by painful, crusting lesions around the mouth. The infection can be a visible reminder of the stigma that still exists surrounding herpes, even after the infection has visibly disappeared. Few people realize that cold sores around the mouth can also be HSV-2, which typically causes genital herpes. Take into consideration that nearly out of every five adolescents and adults has the infection and begin to grasp the scope of this problem.

Acyclovir is designed for treatment of these sometimes-embarrassing, and often painful, sores and blisters around the mouth and genital areas once an outbreak starts. Herpes lesions and blisters will usually go away within a few days after treatment with Acyclovir is begun. Acyclovir, readily available from AccessRx.com, is best used by patients who have few and/or mild outbreaks.

During initial herpes outbreaks, people are sometimes surprised when fever and swollen glands accompany the blisters. Additionally, it is believed that herpes may play a role in the spread of HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. People with herpes can be more susceptible to HIV infection, and herpes can also make already HIV-infected individuals more infectious. Again, herpes cannot be cured, only treated.

AccessRx.com Wants to Help

AccessRx.com wants to help you as you seek information and relief from your herpes outbreaks but making Acyclovir available to you. When you order Acyclovir from AccessRx.com, your order will be shipped promptly and discreetly, and your medical and financial information is guaranteed secure. Call or write to AccessRx.com for more information today about how Acyclovir can help you with your herpes symptoms.