Ok, I have had what looks like a cold sore since this last sunday and although it hasn't looked all that nasty, it's still irritating. It's on my upper lip, and feels funny. It hasn't bubbled up with a nasty looking blister thing, but it's mostly just been red and irriating. What do I do to keep it from spreading? I wash my face and dry with a seperate towel so I don't spread it anywhere else on my body. How do I deal with this disease now that it looks like I have it? How do I keep from spreading it to others? How do I keep from spreading it to my future children? Will I ever feel good again? :-(

Are you sure you don't just have a pimple? What makes you think it's a cold sore and not something else? I'm not trying to trivialise your discomfort or concern, but you could be worried needlessly.

There are OTC creams and ointments that will help speed healing of cold sores (Abreva is the one I've heard of most often), as well as prescription creams (Denavir and Zovirax come to mind).

*If* it's herpes, you should definitely avoid kissing people and other skin-to-skin contact with your mouth while you have symptoms. Wash your hands after touching the area. Keeping the area clean and dry also helps.

If you think you just contracted it, you might have a higher rate of outbreaks and viral shedding between outbreaks than if you've had it for a year or more, so be aware of tingling, itching and pressure in that or surrounding areas and consider that they *might* be signs of viral shedding, but unfortunately that can happen even without symptoms. Just be aware and get a sense of the patterns; you don't have to go into panic mode at every itch or twitch. http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/smile.gif

Finally: Get a doctor to look at it and find out for sure if that's what you have. It might be too late to do a swab culture on it (with or without a wet blister) but if your doc can use a PCR DNA swab test it might pick it up. Unfortunately if the result is negative, it's not conclusive. If you *really* want to know, get a type-specific blood test done (you don't need active symptoms to do a blood test). However if you think you just caught it, it might not show up for a few months in a blood test.

If it turns out you do have oral HSV-1 (the most common cause of cold sores), you have joined as much as 90% of the population who already have it, so you're not alone.

Good luck! Let us know how you make out.

TheOneInFour

How would you tell the difference between a cold sore and pimple/acne? Can acne be on the lip as well?

if you think its a pimple then you should get a blood test. but make sure you ask for the type 1 and type 2 blood test.

Ive read alot and it says that about 80 to 90 percent of people have HSV1 and have break outs every now and then. I even saw a somthing on TV for a lip balm called Herpicel or somthing like that. It says it helps treat cold sores. So if its on TV to get adverticed for everybody to see. Then I guess alot of people have it.. Try using that product. but get a blood test, that will at least give you piece of mind.

Let us know how it goes..

Take care

Thanks for the advice everyone:-) What I think is a cold sore hasn't crusted over or anything... it just seems to be disappearing. It's kinda odd I think. I'll try to get a blood test when I can, but money is super tight right now, so I'll have to save up. Any more words of advice?

Hi TG2,

Keep us posted how you make out. If you get symptoms coming up in the same place again, get a doctor to take a look at it ASAP. It could be a lot of things...cold sore, pimple, maybe you hit yourself in the mouth while sleeping or while brushing your teeth or something, who knows? If it comes up in the same place over and over then that's a signal it *might* be something more serious, but a doctor should be able to give you some insight. Good luck!

TheOneInFour

Well, I haven't gotten a blood test yet, but for the most part, my lips look normal, except one spot that has been there since I made the last post.... nearly a month ago! It has never made a blister or a pimple and just sits there, being red, or most of the time, pink, and rarely causes any special tinglings or anything like that... I'm thinking that maybe I burned my lip there with some hot food, but I'm not sure. Also, if I use a blade for shaving, do I need to replace it every time I shave???

Hi TG2,

Did you ever get your doc to look at it? It doesn't really sound like herpes but it could be something else that should be looked at. If it's from a burn, I don't think it should still be there a month later. I think you should see what your doc says about it if you haven't already.

The1in4