Blisters on hands and in mouth - Herpes?

[hungry08]

My daughter (23 years old) has been dating the same young man for over 4 years (serious relationship).  He is studying to be a Civil Engineer.  He recently had an outbreak of blisters on his fingers and palm of his hands.  I guess he had previous outbreaks on his hands, but since he does not have health insurance, he waited to go to a doctor.  But, this time, it spread to his mouth (primarily the roof of his mouth).  He finally went to a doctor who said he has herpes.  The doctor did not culture any of the blisters, and gave him medicine to take (I'm not sure which medicine).

I am wondering if you think he does, in fact, have HSV-I?  Could it possibly be Coxsackie virus?  How do you get it in the first place?   Should he get a blood test or culture done to confirm the diagnosis?    How do we prevent my daughter from getting it from her boyfriend?

[auntiejessi]

Oops - sorry.  I mistook the age you gave for his age, not hers.  

Aj

[auntiejessi]

He should indeed get some testing done to confirm this.  This isn't sounding like hsv1, as he probably wouldn't get it on his hands - that's very rare - nor would he get it on the roof of his mouth, most likely.

And not to sound rude, but this is up to your daughter.  There isn't anything you can do, and shouldn't be doing, if she's an adult, and I am assuming she is, or she wouldn't be dating a 23 year old for 4 years.  

She should also be tested for herpes, and should ask for a type specific IgG blood test.  Over half of adults in the US have hsv1, and only 20-40% of those will ever get a cold sore.  If she has hsv1 antibodies, and that's indeed what he has, she can't get it again.

And if she gets it, she gets it.  By the time we are elderly, about 80-90% of us will have it anyway.  

If he doesn't have insurance, he should call the local health dept and ask what services they have for people who have no insurance so he can get further evaluation.

Aj