scared and very stress about herpes

[scaredinetown]

hi, i received unprotected sex from an escort in april 16, than protected sex after. her lip looked fine before the oral sex, but after everything, i noticed that on her outer lip there was a red mark, no cuts. i asked her what it was and she said she ate too many french fries and made her inflamed. at the end she gave me a peck on the lip. i tried to move but was not sure if the mark made contact with my lip. on april 22 my upper lip became swollen and red, i went the doctor and they said it was a coldsore( i nevered had a cold sore ever). i was shocked and they gave me some antiviral pills for 2 days. now im really stressed and worried about genital herpes, if she was infected. i called a nurse and they said i would be infected in the genital first before my lip since i nevered kiss her,i would have to wait for blisters for testing and i was infected already if i got the cold sore.i went to the doctors to try and get more antiviral pills and he said no. i asked if i could have been a hsv1 carrier and nevered had an outbreak, but all the stress triggered it, and he said possible. also he said he couldnt see the coldsore, but under room lighting its hard to see. but under sunlight, u can see my upper lip is swollen. also its been 6 days of my cold sore and it has not changed, the color went down a bit, but my lip is still swollen.i have been applying abreva on it 4 times a day. my question is if i was alreadly infected with the hsv1, is it possilble to get genital hsv1? and is my cold sore a cold sore? since it has not changed in 6 days, no blister just swollen. and the doctor said i have to wait 4 weeks to see and blister, would the antiviral pills extend the 4 weeks? currently i have to symptons in my genital area.

[Edward W Hook, MD]

Great.  Glad to hear it.  EWH

[scaredinetown]

hello Dr. Edwards, thank you for all your help. i went back to the doctors and they said it is NOT a coldsore and they gave me some cream to put on it, hopefully this returns my lips to normal. and i have no genital lesions to date. i will keep you updated. thank you very much

[guest345]

God bless your Dr Edward ..I have been reading you comments , Your answers are so calming ..May God bless you for you service ..

[Edward W Hook, MD]

You are safe now.  If lesions have not appeared within 14 days of exposure you can be confident that you did not acquire herpes.  You need to calm down and move forward. There is no need for further testing.  EWH

[scaredinetown]

how long would you advise that i wait to see if i have any symptons in the genitals before i feel safe? thank you

[Edward W Hook, MD]

What you describe does not suggest herpes and if your lip was swollen with herpes, the 2nd doctor should have been able to see it, even if a room without bright lights.

The effect of the antiviral medication cannot be predicted..  If you are still concerns about what you perceive as swelling, I would suggest that you return to your doctor and discuss this.  EWH

[scaredinetown]

also i hope she was telling the truth about the french fries causing her inflammation. it was on her outer rim of the lip.

[scaredinetown]

hello, the second doctor could not even see my lips swollen, but that was because the lighting was not bright. but under sunlight i can see that my lip is not normal.it is swollen with some small red colors and some of my mustach hair is not growing where the swollen is. i have been very stressed after the encounter. could that have caused the intial inflammation?  i am married and have kids, and feel if i became infected, my family life will be over.
also, if i was infected with genital herpes, would the antiviral pills push back the 4 weeks that i would usally wait for lesions?

also if my "coldsore" doesnt change in a few days, should i go back to the doctor and ask to see a dermatalogist?
my family will be gone till middle of june, should i know by than if i have become infected.thank you.

[Edward W Hook, MD]

Welcome to our Forum.  As I understand your post, you do not know that your partner had a cold sore and in fact, she offered a different reason for it.  This makes the possibility that you were even exposed rather low.  

Then, about 6 days after exposure, you felt that your lip became swollen and inflamed and a doctor told you it was a cold sore, providing you with two days of antiviral therapy.  HOWEVER, the swollen area has not changed and another doctor does not see anything abnormal- correct?.  If I have this right, then I am skeptical that this is herpes.  Your 1rst doctor did not help things at all by making a visual diagnosis without testing and bygiving you just enough antiviral therapy to confuse things.  Your taking Abreva has not helped either.

At this time, it is difficult to tell if you acquired HSV-1 at the encounter you describe or not.   My advice is to:

1. Stop the Abreva.
2.  Watch what happens.  If it gets worse, you should have a culture of PCR test performed.  If it does not, wait and see if there is a recurrence.  

I hope these comments are helpful.  EWH