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Possible to Acquire Both HSV-1 and HSV-2 Genitally
Hi Grace,
I've recently become involved with someone who has HSV-1 orally and HSV-2 genitally. I contracted his HSV-1 genitally, so how likely would it be that I would also acquire his HSV-2 genitally? He does not want to take supressive therapy because he is an asymptomatic carrier of HSV-2, how do I convince him to take medication? Thanks.
I've recently become involved with someone who has HSV-1 orally and HSV-2 genitally. I contracted his HSV-1 genitally, so how likely would it be that I would also acquire his HSV-2 genitally? He does not want to take supressive therapy because he is an asymptomatic carrier of HSV-2, how do I convince him to take medication? Thanks.
Best Answer
Hi Grace,
I just recently got a coldsore on my lip (as I have for many years now) and beside it on my cheek a cluster of what I initially thought were pimples. Now I think it is also a coldsore. I have never gotten coldsores on my cheek before. Does this mean another infection site was made, or is this normal in oral-facial herpes? Thanks.
I just recently got a coldsore on my lip (as I have for many years now) and beside it on my cheek a cluster of what I initially thought were pimples. Now I think it is also a coldsore. I have never gotten coldsores on my cheek before. Does this mean another infection site was made, or is this normal in oral-facial herpes? Thanks.
yes I know that, but I mean is sex dangerous because we still don't know what my lesions were? Could they be some other bacteria/virus that we could spread to eachother, or should I just assume that the lesions are only hsv-1? I'm also concerned with the red dot that was on my clitoris as well as a red bump/ swelling/itching on it that happened during the outbreak. They went away in a few days though, my clitoris looks normal now. I guess I should just assume my breakout was ghsv-1 then because no doctor has been able to explain it as anything else, I guess I'm a rare case that my antibodies failed me.Should I get my ear/breast swabbed if lesions surface again? They are prob hsv-1 too...thanks for all the help Grace :)
Do you think it's dangerous for my bf to have any kind of sex with me seeing as we're not sure if the breakouts on my buttocks/thighs and breast/ear are due to herpes at all? I still have extensive scarring on my buttocks/thighs from the outbreak and breast. If all of these sites are herpes that would mean I was infected in 3 new locations despite antibodies, while my partner was shedding w/o symptoms...
he has a history of cold sores so unless what he thought were cold sores as a child weren't, he has hsv1 orally despite his test results. even the best blood tests still miss 1 out of every 10 hsv1 infections.
at this point, you can't get a lot of concrete answers to your questions. follow up on symptoms as you get them and have your partner follow up on his end of things too.
at this point, you can't get a lot of concrete answers to your questions. follow up on symptoms as you get them and have your partner follow up on his end of things too.
The lesions on my left breast were never typed, but they have now left a scar. Do you think it's safe for my boyfriend to make oral contact with my breast when we don't know what the lesions were? Grace can you please answer the ear herpes questions I asked you? I would like answers to that question more than anything else. Sorry for all of the questions, they just keep popping in my head.
Yes, I have had coldsores since age 5, which is why I thought the buttock swab coming back as hsv-1 positive was strange. I was also blood tested for hsv-1 3 years ago and it came back positive (at that time I was with someone who blood tested negative for type 1 and 2).
Flower - have YOU ever had cold sores?
Oral HSV-2 hardly, if ever, recurs. If he had visible sores on his mouth, it's almost surely from HSV-1. What's odd is that his IgG came back negative, which would seem to indicate that his is a new infection, however, the ELISA (the blood test most doctors use) has been found to return false negatives for HSV-1.
You both need to test with the Western Blot at this point, which is a different, more accurate, test than the IgG.
Oral HSV-2 hardly, if ever, recurs. If he had visible sores on his mouth, it's almost surely from HSV-1. What's odd is that his IgG came back negative, which would seem to indicate that his is a new infection, however, the ELISA (the blood test most doctors use) has been found to return false negatives for HSV-1.
You both need to test with the Western Blot at this point, which is a different, more accurate, test than the IgG.
Since the swab on my buttock came back hsv-1 positive, is it possible that his hsv-1 result was a false negative, and he actually does have it orally? How often does that happen? I remember when I had the breakout I also had a red dot in the center of my clitoris and intense itching in that area as well, but if my partner doesn't have hsv-1, that is what's leading me to believe he has hsv-2 orally and infected me. I was also sick with a cold during my oral sex encounter, which hastened my immunity. I appreciate all of your responses Grace :)
is it likely your partner has had hsv2 orally since a child? no it is not. is it likely he contracted hsv2 only orally as an adult? really low risk. most folks who have hsv2 orally also have it genitally.
is saliva for a lube a risk? not really. saliva for lube in general is discouraged. it's a poor lube as well as increases your risk for vaginitis. it's worth buying a good lube for sex :)
As I said, he needs to confirm his status at this point and go from there. Until you know for sure, best to be only having protected sexual contact to protect yourself.
is saliva for a lube a risk? not really. saliva for lube in general is discouraged. it's a poor lube as well as increases your risk for vaginitis. it's worth buying a good lube for sex :)
As I said, he needs to confirm his status at this point and go from there. Until you know for sure, best to be only having protected sexual contact to protect yourself.
If I got infected with Hsv-2 through anal sex, would the outbreaks definitely surface in/around my anus, or could they surface around my vaginal area, in my vaginal area, and on my buttocks too?
My boyfriend said the only symptoms of herpes he's had is coldsores at about age 7. Could that info, combined with the fact that his bloodtest said hsv-1 negative prove in favor of the fact that he has oral hsv-2 and only oral hsv-2 not genital? If that is true, what is my risk in receiving oral sex?
My boyfriend said the only symptoms of herpes he's had is coldsores at about age 7. Could that info, combined with the fact that his bloodtest said hsv-1 negative prove in favor of the fact that he has oral hsv-2 and only oral hsv-2 not genital? If that is true, what is my risk in receiving oral sex?
The lesion on my ear that I mentioned before (which appeared with the other strange breakouts) was located near my ear piercing. I think it old hae possibly been herpes because it went away in a week without scarring and was very itchy. How do people contract ear herpes? What areas of the body can ear herpes show up on (ex side of face, inner ear, etc)? If the lesions on my left breast were herpes, does that mean my right breast and chest are infected too? Does having so many infection sites increase my risk for encephalitis? Especially the possible ear herpes? This really concerns me :(.
Also, when I had the weird breakout on my thighs buttocks, I also had a red dot on my clitoris that went away a few days after surfacing and I remember my vagina had a burning kind of itch. Could the red dot, combined with itching, and breakout on my pubic mound/crease that I mentioned in my very first post make genital hsv-1 more likely? (The red dot was minuscule).
What if my partner's HSV-2 is strictly oral? So far from the IGG his HSV-1 was negative, but he told me that he had obvious coldsores as a child. Would that put me at risk receiving oral sex/kissing? He has given me unprotected oral 3 times, and I have not had any more symptoms since the weird episode in October. He also uses his saliva for lube on me at times, does that put me at risk for HSV-2? If he masturbates himself then fingers me is there risk for transmission? Also, if I use my saliva as lubricant while giving him oral sex, his chances of getting G Hsv-1 are slim right? I shouldn't worry about getting throat/oral HSV-2 from giving him oral sex, right? I've given him oral numerous times and so far I'm fine.
your partner needs to confirm his status at this point. just have your partner call the U of washington and they can send him the kit and paper work. his doc can order it done at your local lab with the kid and sent out. once you know for sure that he is hsv2+, you can better decide what precautions to take. if he is hsv2+, his being on daily suppressive therapy with valtrex will reduce your risk by half. if you two did nothing but avoid sex any time he has anything going on genitally, you have a 90-92% chance each year of NOT contracting his hsv2. if he takes daily suppressive therapy and you also use condoms, you are looking at an increase in protection to 97-98% chance of NOT contracting hsv2 from him. up to the 2 of you if you want to have unprotected oral sex or not.
could you have hsv1 genitally? you could or it could be like HHH suggested and the sensitive pcr test picked up on a trace of hsv1 in the genital area. unless you get an obvious genital lesion that tests + for hsv1, no real easy way to know. since hsv1 orally is more of an issue as far as transmission to a partner than hsv1 genitally is, protecting against your oral hsv1 infection for a partner is more important.
could you have hsv1 genitally? you could or it could be like HHH suggested and the sensitive pcr test picked up on a trace of hsv1 in the genital area. unless you get an obvious genital lesion that tests + for hsv1, no real easy way to know. since hsv1 orally is more of an issue as far as transmission to a partner than hsv1 genitally is, protecting against your oral hsv1 infection for a partner is more important.
Oral HSV-2 is hard to contract and recurs even more rarely. That said, there are still official statistics of folks who carry and shed oral HSV-2, so yes, you're at risk, however small, for contracting it orally if you give him unprotected oral sex. I know 2 patients who got HSV-2 in this way. I doubt you got genital HSV-2 from receiving oral sex from your partner, however. It's possible but highly unlikely.
I'd be very surprised to hear that a lot of people have had oral HSV-2 since childhood, however. HSV-2 is almost always acquired from an infected person's genitals, either from giving oral sex or during genital sex - kids aren't engaged in either of these activities.
Stop having any kind of unprotected sex with your partner below the waist. He can just as easily pass the virus to your anus as to your vagina. Contrary to what you may have heard or read - and also contrary to what your partner has told you - the rate of shedding for genital HSV-2 is high, even asymptomatically (without symptoms) - about 20% of days or 73 days out of the year. You can give him this link to a recent (2008) study on asymptomatic shedding and have him read paragraph 4:
http://jid.oxfordjournals.org/content/198/8/1098.full
Your partner absolutely needs the suppressive (daily) antiviral medication if he wants to reduce the risk of giving you his HSV-2. The official studies have found that all the antivirals reduce the risk of transmission at least 50%. If you also use a condom, it provides about 30% protection. Abstaining from sex when he has symptoms is the final measure of protection. Good luck to you.
I'd be very surprised to hear that a lot of people have had oral HSV-2 since childhood, however. HSV-2 is almost always acquired from an infected person's genitals, either from giving oral sex or during genital sex - kids aren't engaged in either of these activities.
Stop having any kind of unprotected sex with your partner below the waist. He can just as easily pass the virus to your anus as to your vagina. Contrary to what you may have heard or read - and also contrary to what your partner has told you - the rate of shedding for genital HSV-2 is high, even asymptomatically (without symptoms) - about 20% of days or 73 days out of the year. You can give him this link to a recent (2008) study on asymptomatic shedding and have him read paragraph 4:
http://jid.oxfordjournals.org/content/198/8/1098.full
Your partner absolutely needs the suppressive (daily) antiviral medication if he wants to reduce the risk of giving you his HSV-2. The official studies have found that all the antivirals reduce the risk of transmission at least 50%. If you also use a condom, it provides about 30% protection. Abstaining from sex when he has symptoms is the final measure of protection. Good luck to you.
What are the chances his Hsv-2 is only oral (since he mentioned coldsores in childhood) and that he transferred it to my genital area during oral sex, meaning that the swab that was done was miss typed? I've read of people having oral Hsv-2 since childhood, assuming it was Hsv-1 until they got a lesion culture...
If I swallow my partner's semen, what are the chances I'll get Hsv-2 in my throat?
I just went on the University of Washington's website and clicked through the herpes section and request form section and I'm very confused on how to order a kit...
Thank you so much for the probiotic recommendation :) you've offered me a novel strategy for eradicating my yeast issue, I'm very grateful. So with all you've told me, do you believe it's plausible I have genital HSV-1? If my partner is HSV-2 positive genitally, do you think it is fine for me to give him oral without a condom? What are my chances of contracting his virus just with him using antivirals daily?
Since I have HSV-1 orally, what are my risks of contracting his genital HSV-2 orally if he does in fact have the virus in that location and we have oral sex? I'm sorry for all of the questions, this is just a complex issue and I want to know what steps to take with our doctors. Plus you are so awesomely informative about this issue, that I just want to cover all of my bases :) Did you personally ever use barriers when receiving oral sex from others or giving it?
My boyfriend is getting his blood retested in a month, his first HSV type specific blood test was in October. I'm waiting until March to test because this past month we have had unprotected anal sex and protected intercourse because I've had a vaginal yeast infection that has persisted for two months now. I have not had another outbreak following these activities. How can my boyfriend go about ordering a western blot test, and can he get one for HSV-1 and HSV-2? Do you have any suggestions on how to resolve the yeast infection? Also, what is the statistic for people who have HSV-1 and 2 genitally?
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You are reading content posted in the Herpes Community
Herpes spreads by oral, vaginal and anal sex.
Herpes sores blister, then burst, scab and heal.
STIs are the most common cause of genital sores.
Millions of people are diagnosed with STDs in the U.S. each year.
STDs can't be transmitted by casual contact, like hugging or touching.
Syphilis is an STD that is transmitted by oral, genital and anal sex.
having hsv1 orally is significant protection against hsv1 genitally but not 100%. sounds like you had something else going on that triggered the shedding of hsv1 that was detected on your swab, not all your symptoms due to hsv1. you had symptoms on multiple dermatomes too which typically rules out shingles and hsv.
sometimes yeast can be very persistent in females. your gyn should send off a swab to the lab to get a better idea of what type of fungus/yeast is growing. also you can pick up femdophilus by jarrow. it's a probiotic with good research behind it that shows that it helps with vaginitis. take it twice a day for a month while you treat the yeast infection with prescription medications and then you can go down to once a day until you've been vaginitis free for a bit.
why are you having unprotected anal sex with a partner who has hsv2?
I think I recall it's less than 5% of folks who have both hsv1 and hsv2 genitally. most folks have hsv2 genitally first and once you have that, it does seem to have significant protection against contracting hsv1 genitally later on.