Oral Herpes, caused by the HSV-1 virus or the herpes simplex virus can happen to anyone, anytime. Oral Herpes is a significant nuisance factor, lesions are unsightly, and many suffer significant pain and debilitation. Widely known as kissing blisters or fever blisters, cold sores can cause Oral herpes. HSV-1 is the most common Herpes Simplex Virus and can be contacted by coming into contact with the saliva of an infected person. HSV-1 is usually acquired orally during childhood, but may also be sexually transmitted through oral-genital contact.
Oral Herpes generally show up on the lips of a person but can also appear inside the mouth, on the face, or even inside or on the nose. The outbreaks occur commonly on the borders of the lips. The outbreaks start with small areas of tingling, burning or itching, which then developed into fluid-filled blisters, which ruptured to form ulcers, which heal in about 12 days. Oral herpes virus usually enters the body through the mucous membranes of the lips and travels to its hiding space in a group of nerves positioned in front of the ear known as the Trigeminal Ganglion. Since the eye is close to the Trigeminal Ganglion, HSV-1 can travel to the eye, a potentially serious condition. According to the Mayo Clinic, it is the number one cause of blindness in the United States. When the eye is involved, herpes simplex typically affects the eyelids, conjunctiva, and cornea. In case of kissing, the virus can be transmitted even when there are no symptoms.
What causes Oral Herpes?
Oral Herpes in almost all cases is caused by the Herpes Simplex Type I virus (HSV-1).It is a virus that causes sores in and around your mouth. Here are the causes for Oral Herpes:
- Coming into contact with someone who has been infected with Oral Herpes could also pass on the virus. Oral
- Herpes are quite contagious and kissing someone who has an active lesion can spread the virus.
- Other reason could be that the virus that was dormant in the skin becomes active.
- Sharing utensils, towels or even razors with a person who has been infected can also spread the virus.
- Injury to lips or mouth can trigger an outbreak.
- Stress is another trigger that can cause Oral Herpes. Stress can weaken the body’s immune system rendering it unable to defend against the virus.
- Over exposure to sun or extreme cold can be another cause.
- The ultimate trigger that causes Oral Herpes is an acid body pH below 7. Our acid and alkaline balance, called pH balance, is very fragile. A pH of seven is neutral. Anything below seven is acid, and above is alkaline. The ideal pH for optimal health is an alkaline 7.4 pH. Calcium intake is the key to maintaining this balance.
- Hormonal changes such as menstruation and even pregnancy can cause Oral Herpes.
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Symptoms of Oral Herpes usually develop within 2 to 20 days after contact with the virus, although it could take longer. These symptoms may last up to several weeks, varying from one person to the next. In most of the cases, the first attack of Oral Herpes causes visible sores. The sores usually erupt in the mouth area, especially the lips, gums, front of the tongue, throat, inside area of the cheeks and the roof of the mouth.
The other symptoms include:
- Difficulty in eating and drinking due to the presence of the sores.
- Mouth ulcers
- Lip ulcers
- In most rare cases Genital ulcers
- Swelling of the lymph node in the neck
- Corneal ulcers
- Conjunctival ulcers
- Gingivostomatitis
- Having recurrent Cold sores throughout life
Many people feel panicked or depressed when they have Oral Herpes. Partly as a result of these feelings, the first few outbreaks can cause a great deal of stress. It may be important, therefore, to take additional steps.
- Maintain personal hygiene: Wash your hands and be careful about touching other parts of your body. You genitals and eyes are particularly susceptible to the herpes simplex virus.
- Avoid direct contact: Coming in direct contact with an infected person can cause Oral Herpes. Minimize the risk of indirect spread by thoroughly washing items in hot water before re-use.
- No kissing and skin contact with people who are infected: Kissing a person infected with Oral Herpes or having an active lesion is the easiest way of contracting cold sores.
- No sharing: Avoid sharing towels, utensils, and razors especially.
- Don’t expose skin to extreme condition: Overexposure to sunlight or extreme cold can trigger Oral Herpes. Make sure to always use sun block on your lips and face.
- Avoid oral sex: Avoid performing oral sex when you have active herpes lesions on or near your mouth and avoid passive oral sex with someone who has active oral or genital lesions. Condoms can help reduce, but do not entirely eliminate the risk of transmission via oral or genital sex with an infected person.
Most often Oral Herpes heal by themselves in about 10 days without medical treatment. Some remedies to help treat symptoms of Oral Herpes:
- In addition to topical creams, Cool moist dressings, Domeboro dressings, Burow's dressings are some recent methods used to treat Oral Herpes.
- In cases where a person suffers recurrence of Oral Herpes, it is better to consult a doctor.
Oral herpes can affect our daily lives. Taking the necessary hygiene precautions, consulting your doctor and getting proper medical treatment can help prevent and overcome them. Avoiding extreme weather conditions as well as keeping your stress levels in check also helps.
1) Oral Herpes and Pregnancy: It is common for women with oral herpes to be concerned about her pregnancy. The best and first defense against oral herpes during pregnancy should be prevention. Increased sun exposure, poor diet, lack of sleep and illness can trigger Oral Herpes. Pregnancy can create a chaos with a woman’s hormonal system. Hormonal changes also mean that the body’s immune system may be left weakened to defend against invading viruses and the woman vulnerable to infections such as herpes type 1 and 2. Therefore it is possible that Oral Herpes might appear in the early stages of pregnancy. Prenatal vitamins rich in folic acid as well as personal hygiene such as washing hands, avoiding touching areas that are most likely to be infected such as face and genitals, and avoiding kissing and skin to skin contact with a person infected with Oral Herpes will help spreading the infection.
2) Oral herpes and babies: Women with herpes can have normal and healthy babies, but certain precautions need to be taken to protect the babies from contracting herpes. Babies are most susceptible to infections. A baby can catch HSV if:
- the virus is present in the birth canal during pregnancy.
- the baby is kissed by a person infected with Oral Herpes and in very rare instances if a person touches an active cold sore and then touches the baby immediately.
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