Herpes and Neuropathy

Is it possible that exposure to several different herpes viruses could cause neuropathy?  For example, if you have been exposed to HSV-1 (Cols Sores), HSV-2 (Genital Herpes), Chicken Pox, Mononucleosis and possibly HHV-6, do you run more of a risk for neuropathy?  (I know for sure I have or have had the first four).  Recently, I have been using acyclovir because I was having genital herpes outbreaks almost every month right before my period.  It is strange because I have had genital herpes for 20 years, with barely any symptoms and about 6 years ago it slowly started reappearing until I was having breakouts once a month.  About 5 years ago I also started getting stinging pain and numbness concentrated mostly in my hands and feet.  Sometimes when it is really bad, I can feel it running from my shoulders, down my arms and up the back of my legs.  More recently, about the last six months, I have been getting muscle spasms or twitches.  When I exercise, the day after I feel like I have been hit by a truck (pain and stiffness all over).  I never feel refreshed after sleep and am often very fatigued.  I have been diagnosed with hashimoto's thyroid disease (hypothyroid) and take sufficient synthroid (TSH is 1.5 to 2: T3 is good also).  I have been tested for all kinds of autoimmune and neurological diseases and all have been negative (i.e. Autoimmune arthritis, HIV, Hepatitis, Syphilis, Lupus, MS, Lyme Disease, etc., etc.).  Coincidently, the problems started about the time I started using suppressive therapy (Acyclovir) for the outbreaks.  My Question(s):  Is it possible that a combination of Herpes viruses can cause neuropathy?  Is it possible that acyclovir might be the cause (side effect)?  Can chronic fatigue cause neuropathy and/or neuralgia?

[beanniebaby]

Might be herpetic neuralgia caused by shingles.  I suffer from this also.  And I used to only get my outbreaks once a year and after a series of 5 surgeries I started having outbreaks 3 - 4 times a year.  Both genital and on my left hip along my paroneal nerve.  Shingles cause terrible pain that can last for years in some people.  Shngles (herpes) are caused by chicken pox.

[beanniebaby]

PS  I have a lot of other physical problems also, but the only thing that gave me relief from the pain was morphine, which I now take several times a day.

[Hope75]

I have an active infection of HSV-1 but no cold sore.  I ALSO have all you are saying, fatigue, burning hands, feet, back, etc.  My neuro thinks this is what the issue is.  I take Famvir and in Aug. I slacked off of taking it in the morning and my burning/twitching came back!  Very annoying.  My neuro has no studies to back this up, so he gave me a diagnosis of fibromyalgia for insurance purposes.  He talks about the need for this type of research to be done, but virologists will not "think outside of the box" and say that viruses can travel into other tissues/nerves (like the hands and feet).  I think he is on to something, because many people complain of neuropathies that are idiopathic.  About half of all neuropathies are idiopathic!  Something is happening to us!  Take care:)

[GODISLOVE]

I seem to get out-breaks when I am under alot of stress.  Although i gave natural birth to me son who is two years old and by the grace of GOD he is as healthy as can be.  I don't take any medications and I never did.  Medications can cause other things is what I believe.  I have an out break also maybe once a year (HSV-2).  When I had my first out break I had tingling in my feet along with flu like symptoms.  But thats about it.  As of now I just had my first really bad outbreak in about 4 years and I had diarreha.  i was also highly stressed at this time.

[aeiou1]

Herpes Simplex 1 and 2 can BOTH cause neuropathic pain syndromes. It is not limited to herpes zoster.  There is plenty of research out there about it. I cannot understand why MDs are still ignorant of this or denying the association, when there is ample material in the literature documenting this problem.  HSV infections are epidemic.  It's time for primary care physicians to get current on the subclinical (not visually observable) and atypical (non-standard) manifestations of the disease.

HAVE HERPES? If you have been paying attention to your symptoms and you think your pain is related to your HSV infection, IT PROBABLY IS.  Your doctors may not know of the neuropathic aspects of HSV, so you will probably have to educate them.  Tell them to check the Merck Manual, the NIH research, the Journal of Pain, etc., etc.  Google it up yourself and go prepared. Try searching Herpes Simplex and neuralgia, HSV and neuropathic pain, genital herpes and neuropathic pain.  Your pain is real and it's not that unusual, but once doctors get a particular disease profile in their head, they will dismiss anything that doesn't fit it.  They are just people too, and they're expected to have all the answers.  Research shows MOST (70%) herpes simplex infections are not correctly identified by either patient or doctor, and more than half (51%) present with symptoms other than the typical lesions.