hi i was just wondering, i see everyone mention how giveing oral sex to someone while u have coldsores and such can transmit hsv-2, but i was wondering if u have hsv-2 but it only affects ur mouth and not ur genitals(this can happen), and u kiss someone on the lips, is it possible for the virus to be transmitted to them ?

Hi Coughtout,

Yes, it is possible to transmit oral herpes to another person just through mouth-to-mouth kissing. However, the chances of this happening are different depending if it's type-1 or type-2. By far most cases of oral herpes are HSV-1, with oral HSV-2 being somewhat rare. HSV-1 thrives more easily in the mouth area and not as easily in the genital area. HSV-2 OTOH thrives more easily in the genital area and not as easily in the mouth area (for reasons not completely understood).

It is estimated that HSV-1 could account for as much as 30% of genital herpes (depending which study you read), the rest being HSV-2. Even if you get HSV-1 genitally by receiving oral sex, though, it remains HSV-1. Many people assume that ALL genital herpes is HSV-2 but that's only because it's the most common cause of genital herpes. HSV-1 and HSV-2 are different (if related) viruses and they stay the same virus no matter where they're transmitted to or from.

So having said all that, if the person really does have oral HSV-2 (relatively rare, since the mouth is not its preferred location) then yes, they could pass it on through mouth-to-mouth kissing, but it would not be as likely to take hold as HSV-1 (which takes hold easily in the mouth area).

If you get cold sores and aren't sure which type you have, you can get a swab culture done on a fresh outbreak sore (within 24-48 hours) to find out. If you've had cold sores for a long time (like since childhood) then it's almost certainly HSV-1 since most of the population has HSV-1 orally. If you suspect you might have both (less likely but possible) then the only way to confirm that for sure is to do swab cultures on fresh sores, but it may or may not give accurate results.

Hope that helps!

TheOneInFour

[This message has been edited by TheOneInFour (edited 04-08-2003).]