HSV1 vs. HSV2

[CaliNative91]

Hello,

I am a 25 year old male. As a child I would sometimes get cold sores on my lips. Now that I am older I recently got a cold sore on my lip accompanied w/ a mildly tender gland in my neck.

I read that those are generally associated w/ new infections...does this mean this new cold sore is due to HSV2? Or can the gland sometimes do this during a cold sore if it's the first one in a long while?

Thanks!

[feelingundone]

I highly doubt you have oral hsv2. It is on the rare side and not very common. You can get a swollen lymph node while having a cold sore or for many different reasons. I would not be concerned about an oral hsv2 infection.  Like I said hsv2 rarely infects the oral cavity and is usually very mild when it does. Has few outbreaks and sheds very little.