Rash on bottom lip

[Happy215]

On August 1st I shared a good night kiss with a date. Two days later I notice my  bottom lip itches and is red. I put alcohol on it but it doesn’t help. In the next week it has developed into a patch rash on my lower lip. It is not a bumpy rash, it is just red itchy and ugly.  I have been applying Abreva and cortisone. One of the two seemed to work and dry it out. On August 22 I went to the doc and by this time it was dry. The doc did a blood test and it came back negative. It is now the first week of September and the rash is back to being red and itchy because I stopped using the Abreva and cortisone.... I am scared about the timing of all this. Two days after a new kiss and I have a rash I’m my lip??? Even though the test was negative wtf is this on my lip???

[auntiejessi]

You may have used too many things on it, and have have caused a reaction from that.

Alcohol is very drying, as is Abreva and cortisone.

In any case, itching and redness is not herpes, nor is a patch rash. That sounds like an allergy or dermatitis. Cortisone would help both. Herpes doesn't react well at all to cortisone, which is a steroidal cream.

Try just using the cortisone and see what happens, or don't use anything, and let the doctor see it and see what he thinks.

The blood test may be negative if they did an IgG because it can take up to 4 months to show positive. If they did an IgM test, it's terribly unreliable and shouldn't be done on anyone but newborns.

That all said, it doesn't sound like herpes to me, but let your doctor see.  

[Happy215]

I put all those thing on it because the rash was already there and I thought I was getting a cold sore. It is going on 5 weeks now and the rash has dried up and then come back when I stop with the regimen. Every other day I think I see a cold sore appearing and it is driving me nuts. The doc insisted it was not too early to test.

[auntiejessi]

He may have done an IgM test, which is not reliable. Can you get a copy of your results?

I still don't think it's herpes, but you should know what kind of herpes testing you had done. If it's coming back when you stop using the stuff on it, it's probably time to see a dermatologist.