Shedding period for HSV-2

[maryzee]

Ho wod you know when you are in the shedding phase of Herpes?  I do not have genital herpes but I do get cold sores frequently and wnat to know when it is best to avoid performing oral sex with my partner...

[auntiejessi]

No, and I thought it was removed, anyway.  And it would have been on my old computer that died an ugly death, so I wouldn't have it anyway.

I think its important to keep in mind that there are statistics, and then there are people and experiences.  Your mileage may vary.

I was doing research for a question in STDs earlier, and found out that in Japan, ghsv1 far outnumbers ghsv2, so it really is possible.

Just ask all those folks with ghsv1 - they'll tell ya.  ;)

[gracefromHHP]

I need to look up the thread where we all listed our shedding study results over on HHp for you waring.  I think 6 of us participated in the study and listed our results. It was all folks infected for over 10 years with hsv2.  I think I was the only one who actually still gets ob's frequently and I was ironically shedding less than the rest of them. Just very interesting stuff I thought. Still waiting for the study to be officially published so I can talk about it more but since we all volunteered to list our results I can talk about that part.

jess - do you have that thread bookmarked by chance?

grace

[waringblender]

It makes me very skeptical that HSV2 is easily transmitted during asymptomatic phases. That's not to say I wouldn't use condoms and medication to protect partners (even though I rarely have outbreaks any more without medication), but it makes me wonder if the information thrown around  on asymptomatic shedding is simply a scare tactic  that is rooted in the negative cultural thinking around STDs in general. As in, sex  bad, therefore herpes bad. Therefore, easy to get herpes no matter when you screw somebody with it. When in fact, this could easily not be the case.

[gracefromHHP]

terrific questions waring :)  

Actually in the under 30 crowd - hsv1 genital infections are the cause of 60% of all newly acquired genital herpes infections. It is beating out hsv2 in that age group.   Over 30 - hsv2 is the biggest culprit. Hsv2 though is still the culprit for most recurrences no matter what the age group.

We don't have any shedding studies that I'm aware of that look at hsv1 orally in folks infected for a long period of time ( from childhood for instance ). I think most of what we have is in folks fairly newly diagnosed since the majority of folks don't get frequent enough cold sores to participate in the current studies if they've been infected long term.    I think it would be an excellent study to have done but then I want to swab the world most days...he he he  I think the medical community has ignored hsv1 in general too long and it's time for better answers for folks with hsv1 genitally and orally.  The costs to run the studies and the committment of the participants ( hard to keep folks swabbing 1-4x/day for 3 months no matter what the orifice ) really stand in the way unfortunately.  I think with the current info that showed that hsv2 sometimes just sheds for a few hours here and there - getting swabbing 4x/day for oral hsv1 would also be interesting to look at.  

It would be ironic if either of us transmitted hsv1 genitally to a partner thru oral sex instead of our hsv2 wouldn't it?

grace

[waringblender]

I have seen the 18-20% number bandied about on the HSV1 shedding statistics. I'm not sure I'm convinced, however. I've had HSV1 since childhood (last cold sore in high school, or earlier). Does that mean I'm still shedding 18-20% of days? All those BJs I gave in my 20s and 30s put the guys at risk? Color me unconvinced.

The majority of herpes is supposedly contracted during asymptomatic shedding, yet genital HSV1 has NEVER been as prevalent as HSV2, that I know of, anyway. How do the people who believe that asymptomatic shedding causes the most infections explain this discrepancy? HSV1 oral supposedly sheds as much as, or more than HSV2 genital. Wouldn't we then see at least equal infection rates of HSV1 genital with HSV2?

[auntiejessi]

Supression is taking valtrex or acyclovir every day.  It helps prevent the virus from replicating, thereby preventing outbreaks and reducing shedding.

Just a note, though - if you have oral hsv1, then you would give your partner genital hsv1, not hsv2.  The number denotes the strain of the virus, not the location of it.

There's no way to know if you are 100% safe when giving oral sex without any symptoms.  Oral hsv1 sheds about 20% of days/year, so its possible to transmit it then.  I would suggest your partner get tested for hsv, so you know if he has it already.  Only about 20-40% of people with hsv1 will ever have symptoms of it.

AJ

[maryzee]

So to clarify...

What do yo mean by going on Suppression?

And if my partner does not have HSV-1 or 2 then it is safe for me to perform oral sex if I don't feel I am coming down with a cold sore right??

[auntiejessi]

There's no real way to know.  Most shedding happens a few days before getting an outbreak, and might a few days after.  Other than that, you don't know because it is asymptomatic.

Have you considered going on suppression to help prevent outbreaks?  Has your partner been tested to know if he already has hsv1?  If he does, all you need to do is avoid oral sex when you have an ob, and he should be fine.

AJ