Herpetic gingivostomatitis

Herpetic gingivostomatitis is often the initial presentation during the first herpes infection. It is of greater severity than herpes labialis, which is often the subsequent presentations. 

Herpes labialis

Infection occurs when the virus comes into contact with oral mucosa or abraded skin. 

Herpes genitalis

When symptomatic, the typical manifestation of a primary HSV-1 or HSV-2 genital infection is clusters of inflamed papules and vesicles on the outer surface of the genitals resembling cold sores. 

Herpetic whitlowand herpes gladiatorum

Herpes whitlow is a painful infection that typically affects the fingers or thumbs. On occasion, infection occurs on the toes or on the nail cuticle. Individuals who participate in contact sports such as wrestling, rugby, and football(soccer), sometimes acquire a condition caused by HSV-1 known as herpes gladiatorum, scrumpox, wrestler's herpes, or mat herpes, which presents as skin ulceration on the face, ears, and neck. Symptoms include fever, headache, sore throat, and swollen glands. It occasionally affects the eyes or eyelids. 

Herpesviral encephalitis andherpesviral meningitis

A herpetic infection of the brain thought to be caused by the transmission of virus from a peripheral site on the face following HSV-1 reactivation, along the trigeminal nerve axon, to the brain. HSV is the most common cause of viral encephalitis. When infecting the brain, the virus shows a preference for the temporal lobe.[14] HSV-2 is the most common cause of Mollaret's meningitis, a type of recurrent viral meningitis. 

Herpes esophagitis

Symptoms may include painful swallowing (odynophagia) and difficulty swallowing (dysphagia). It is often associated with impaired immune function (e.g. HIV/AIDS,immunosuppression in solid organ transplants). 

Prevention 

Barrier protection, such as acondom, can reduce the risk of herpes transmission.

As with almost all sexually transmitted infections, women are more susceptible to acquiring genital HSV-2 than men.[36] On an annual basis, without the use of antivirals or condoms, the transmission risk of HSV-2 from infected male to female is about 8–11%.[32][37] This is believed to be due to the increased exposure of mucosal tissue to potential infection sites. Transmission risk from infected female to male is around 4–5% annually.[37] Suppressive antiviral therapy reduces these risks by 50%.[38] Antivirals also help prevent the development of symptomatic HSV in infection scenarios, meaning the infected partner will be seropositive but symptom-free by about 50%. Condom use also reduces the transmission risk significantly.[39][40] Condom use is much more effective at preventing male-to-female transmission than vice versa.[39] Previous HSV-1 infection may reduce the risk for acquisition of HSV-2 infection among women by a factor of three, although the one study that states this has a small sample size of 14 transmissions out of 214 couples.[41]

However, asymptomatic carriers of the HSV-2 virus are still contagious. In many infections, the first symptom people will have of their own infections is the horizontal transmission to a sexual partner or the vertical transmission of neonatal herpes to a newborn at term. Since most asymptomatic individuals are unaware of their infection, they are considered at high risk for spreading HSV.[42]

In October 2011, the anti-HIV drug tenofovir, when used topically in a microbicidal vaginal gel, was reported to reduce herpes virus sexual transmission by 51%.[43]

Barrier methods 

Condoms offer moderate protection against HSV-2 in both men and women, with consistent condom users having a 30%-lower risk of HSV-2 acquisition compared with those who never use condoms.[44] A female condom can provide greater protection than the male condom, as it covers the labia.[45] The virus cannot pass through a synthetic condom, but a male condom's effectiveness is limited[46] because herpes ulcers may appear on areas not covered by it. Neither type of condom prevents contact with the scrotum, anus, buttocks, or upper thighs, areas that may come in contact with ulcers or genital secretions during sexual activity. Protection against herpes simplex depends on the site of the ulcer; therefore, if ulcers appear on areas not covered by condoms, abstaining from sexual activity until the ulcers are fully healed is one way to limit risk of transmission.[47] The risk is not eliminated, however, as viral shedding capable of transmitting infection may still occur while the infected partner is asymptomatic.[48] The use of condoms or dental damsalso limits the transmission of herpes from the genitals of one partner to the mouth of the other (or vice versa) during oral sex. When one partner has a herpes simplex infection and the other does not, the use of antiviral medication, such as valaciclovir, in conjunction with a condom, further decreases the chances of transmission to the uninfected partner.[12] Topical microbicides that contain chemicals that directly inactivate the virus and block viral entry are being investigated.[12]

Antivirals 

Antivirals may reduce asymptomatic shedding; asymptomatic genital HSV-2 viral shedding is believed to occur on 20% of days per year in patients not undergoing antiviral treatment, versus 10% of days while on antiviral therapy.[28]

Pregnancy 

The risk of transmission from mother to baby is highest if the mother becomes infected around the time of delivery (30% to 60%),[49][50] since insufficient time will have occurred for the generation and transfer of protective maternal antibodies before the birth of the child. In contrast, the risk falls to 3% if the infection is recurrent,[51] and is 1–3% if the woman is seropositive for both HSV-1 and HSV-2,[51][52] and is less than 1% if no lesions are visible.[51] Women seropositive for only one type of HSV are only half as likely to transmit HSV as infected seronegative mothers. To prevent neonatal infections, seronegative women are recommended to avoid unprotected oral-genital contact with an HSV-1-seropositive partner and conventional sex with a partner having a genital infection during the last trimester of pregnancy. Mothers infected with HSV are advised to avoid procedures that would cause trauma to the infant during birth (e.g. fetal scalp electrodes, forceps, and vacuum extractors) and, should lesions be present, to elect caesarean section to reduce exposure of the child to infected secretions in the birth canal.[12] The use of antiviral treatments, such as acyclovir, given from the 36th week of pregnancy, limits HSV recurrence and shedding during childbirth, thereby reducing the need for caesarean section.[12]

Acyclovir is the recommended antiviral for herpes suppressive therapy during the last months of pregnancy. The use of valaciclovir and famciclovir, while potentially improving compliance, have less-well-determined safety in pregnancy.

Management

No method eradicates herpes virus from the body, but antiviral medications can reduce the frequency, duration, and severity of outbreaks. Analgesics such as ibuprofen and paracetamol (acetaminophen) can reduce pain and fever. Topical anesthetic treatments such as prilocaine, lidocaine, benzocaine, or tetracaine can also relieve itching and pain.[53][54][55]

Antiviral  

The antiviral medication acyclovir

Several antiviral drugs are effective for treating herpes, including acyclovir, valaciclovir (valacyclovir), famciclovir, and penciclovir. Acyclovir was the first discovered and is now available in generic.[56] Valacyclovir is also available as a generic.[57]

Evidence supports the use of acyclovir and valacyclovir in the treatment of herpes labialis[58] as well as herpes infections in people with cancer.[59] The evidence to support the use of acyclovir in primary herpetic gingivostomatitis is weaker.[60]

Topical 

A number of topical antivirals are effective for herpes labialis, including acyclovir, penciclovir, and docosanol.[58][61]

Alternative medicine 

Certain dietary supplements and alternative remedies are claimed to be beneficial in the treatment of herpes.[62] Evidence is insufficient, though, to support use of many of these compounds, including echinacea, eleuthero, L-lysine, zinc, monolaurin bee products, and aloe vera.[63] While a number of small studies show possible benefit from monolaurin, L-lysine, aspirin, lemon balm, topical zinc, or licorice root cream in treatment, these preliminary studies have not been confirmed by higher-quality randomized controlled studies.[64]

Prognosis

Following active infection, herpes viruses establish a latent infection in sensory and autonomic ganglia of the nervous system. The double-stranded DNA of the virus is incorporated into the cell physiology by infection of the nucleus of a nerve's cell body. HSV latency is static; no virus is produced; and is controlled by a number of viral genes, including latency-associated transcript.[65]

Many HSV-infected people experience recurrence within the first year of infection.[12] Prodrome precedes development of lesions. Prodromal symptoms include tingling (paresthesia), itching, and pain where lumbosacral nerves innervate the skin. Prodrome may occur as long as several days or as short as a few hours before lesions develop. Beginning antiviral treatment when prodrome is experienced can reduce the appearance and duration of lesions in some individuals. During recurrence, fewer lesions are likely to develop and are less painful and heal faster (within 5–10 days without antiviral treatment) than those occurring during the primary infection.[12] Subsequent outbreaks tend to be periodic or episodic, occurring on average four or five times a year when not using antiviral therapy.

The causes of reactivation are uncertain, but several potential triggers have been documented. A 2009 study showed the protein VP16 plays a key role in reactivation of the dormant virus.[66] Changes in the immune system during menstruation may play a role in HSV-1 reactivation.Concurrent infections, such as viral upper respiratory tract infection or other febrile diseases, can cause outbreaks. Reactivation due to other infections is the likely source of the historic terms 'cold sore' and 'fever blister'.

Other identified triggers include local injury to the face, lips, eyes, or mouth; trauma; surgery; radiotherapy; and exposure to wind, ultraviolet light, or sunlight.

The frequency and severity of recurrent outbreaks vary greatly between people. Some individuals' outbreaks can be quite debilitating, with large, painful lesions persisting for several weeks, while others experience only minor itching or burning for a few days. Some evidence indicates genetics play a role in the frequency of cold sore outbreaks. An area of human chromosome 21 that includes six genes has been linked to frequent oral herpes outbreaks. An immunity to the virus is built over time. Most infected individuals experience fewer outbreaks and outbreak symptoms often become less severe. After several years, some people become perpetually asymptomatic and no longer experience outbreaks, though they may still be contagious to others. Immunocompromised individuals may experience longer, more frequent, and more severe episodes. Antiviral medication has been proven to shorten the frequency and duration of outbreaks.[74] Outbreaks may occur at the original site of the infection or in proximity to nerve endings that reach out from the infected ganglia. In the case of a genital infection, sores can appear at the original site of infection or near the base of the spine, the buttocks, or the back of the thighs. HSV-2-infected individuals are at higher risk for acquiring HIV when practicing unprotected sex with HIV-positive persons, in particular during an outbreak with active lesions.[75