Herpes Simplex Virus (HSV) 1 and 2 Testing
Herpes Simplex Virus, also called HSV, is a sexually transmitted viral infection passed through unsafe sex that causes fever blisters, cold sores and genital herpes. Herpes is a family of viruses that can infect the human body. There are two stains of herpes simplex virus called HSV 1 and HSV 2. Both HSV 1 and HSV 2 can infect any surface area of the body. HSV tends to infect mucus membranes such as the lips, eye, nose, vulva, penis or anus. However HSV can also infect deep inside the vagina or anus where it may not be felt or seen. Additionally, HSV can infect the face, neck, torso, fingers, legs or other body surfaces. You can even have herpes simplex virus (HSV) without symptoms!
Costs:
Costs:
$140 - HerpeSelect Test
$370 - Herpes Western Blot
$160 - Herpes Culture Without Typing
$180 - Herpes Culture With Typing
Herpes 1 and 2 Fact Sheet
What Is Herpes?
When a person becomes infected with HSV, the virus enters the skins cells and nerve endings. The HSV infection damages the cells causes blisters and sores to form that can take anywhere from several days to several weeks to heal. Once the sores have healed, HSV travels from the nerve endings at the surface down nerve pathways deeper into the body where it lays dormant or inactive in the spinal column. Later HSV can become active again. When it does it travels up the same nerve pathways to the same surface area of the skin causing another outbreak. This is why outbreaks reoccur in the same spot over and over.
HSV tends to reoccur following periods of stress, excessive sun exposure to any part of the body (not just the part of the body that has the outbreaks), irregular eating and lifestyle habits such as excessive intake of sugar, coffee, alcohol, hot spicy foods, fired foods, manufactured non-food fats such margarine, cigarette smoking and toxic chemical exposure.
Herpes Family Viruses Include:
Herpes Simplex Virus Symptoms
At the beginning of an HSV outbreak a tingly itchy and sometimes red irritation typically forms on the skin. Within a matter of hours, tiny itchy blisters appear which break open, usually within one to two days. The broken blisters cause sores that ooze a clear watery pale yellow fluid, which becomes sticky as it dries. The sores are usually itchy and painful forming a thick pale yellow scab over the surface that turns darker and crusty as days pass. It is common for lymph nodes near the HSV outbreak to swell in response to the infection. Swollen lymph nodes can feel like tender kidney bean shaped bumps beneath the skin. They are usually located under the chin if the HSV outbreak is on the lips or in the groin if the HSV outbreak is on the genitals. An HSV outbreak may last anywhere from a couple of days to three weeks or longer. HSV sores often take much longer to heal than the average scrape, cut or sore. During the outbreak HSV can spread to neighboring skin. A healthy immune system will fight back against the infection to help heal the HSV sores. Herpes symptoms can include:
Who should test for herpes?
How Herpes Testing Is Done
Currently there are three main ways of testing for Herpes Simplex Virus (HSV):Herpes Simplex Virus Culture- This test is done by swabbing a rash or sore during a suspected outbreak with a swab that is sent to a lab in a special viral culture media test tube. The lab then grows the culture to look for evidence of HSV. This test is most accurate if it is done as soon after the appearance of a rash of blisters or sores as possible. The test can distinguish between HSV 1 and HSV 2 with a very high rate of accuracy. If you have blisters or sores this is considered the best method of testing for HSV. The results take about 3-5 working days in most cases.
Herpes 1 & 2 Antibody Blood Tests - There are several HSV antibody blood tests, some of which are more accurate than others. The HerpeSelect antibody blood test technology, which looks for HSV IgG antibodies, has a high rate of accuracy in not only detecting HSV antibodies, but also distinguishing between HSV 1 and HSV 2 if there are high enough levels of antibodies for the test to tell them apart. It takes most people at least one month after becoming infected with HSV to develop enough antibodies in their blood for the antibodies to be easily detected by this blood test. It can take a longer or shorter amount of time for some. HSV IgM antibody blood tests are designed to try to identify antibodies from a very recent Herpes outbreak. This test is notoriously inaccurate in many adults but can be helpful in testing infants. HSV antibody test results usually take 2-3 working days in most cases.
Herpes 1 & 2 Western Blot Test - This test is currently the most accurate in distinguishing between HSV 1 and HSV 2. The test requires a tube of blood. The Herpes Western Blot has a very high rate of accuracy one month after becoming infected with HSV, all though it can sometimes be detected in a shorter amount of time. The results usually take about 5-7 working days in most cases.
Herpes Treatment
Herpes can be treated and controlled with a variety of treatment methods. Mainstream medical treatments include prescription antiviral drugs such as Acyclovir (also called Zovirax) and Valtrex (also called Valcyclovir). These antiviral drugs so not cure Herpes and do not eliminate it from the body. Antiviral drugs try to slow the Herpes virus down by attempting to interfere the the Herpes virus' genetic material. Alternative medical treatments include medicinal nutritional strategies, nutritional supplements, herbs, acupuncture, homeopathy, amino acids, minerals, etc. Alternative medical treatments are designed to support the immune system to help the body fight back and heal itself.
Herpes Transmission
It is widely believed by most medical experts that HSV is contagious starting from the time the virus begins to travel to the surface of the skin, at the very beginning of an outbreak, causing an initial itching tingling and redness, called the "prodromal phase". When HSV blisters and sores are present HSV is particularly contagious. HSV continues to be contagious until the HSV scabs are completely gone and the skin is totally healed and smooth. During the time when the virus is traveling to the surface of the skin and when sores and scabs are present the virus is said to be "shedding" (meaning present or "shedding" from the surface of the skin) and therefore contagious. It is during this time that the virus can be transmitted to a partner or another part of the body.
The majority of people who have sexually become infected with HSV know they became infected from unprotected sex with a partner who was having an outbreak at the time. However, some people believe that they may have become infected with HSV even though their partner insists they did not have an outbreak. There could be several explanations for this.
In some cases a partner's HSV might not produce symptoms as it starts to come to the surface of their skin. Having unprotected sex at this stage can transmit HSV even though there are no sores. While some people don't notice symptoms at this stage, most people do feel a tingling itchy feeling alerting them to the beginning of an outbreak so precautions can be taken to avoid transmission.
Another possibility is that the person became infected with HSV from a previous partner but did not experience an outbreak right away. While most people have their first outbreak within one to three weeks after becoming infected, it is possible for several years to pass before an outbreak develops.
Additionally, some people experience HSV outbreaks that are very minor or mistake them for another skin condition. This can result in a person falsely believing that they do not have HSV and accidentally passing it to their partner
Finally, some people simply may not tell their partner they are having an HSV outbreak at the time of sex, and deny it later if questioned about it.
Myths and Facts about Herpes Simplex Virus (HSV) Types 1 and 2
There is NO significant difference between HSV1 and HSV2 other than the fact that labs can now more easily distinguish between the two types with tests like the HerpeSelect antibody blood test and the even more selective Herpes Western Blot test. Because each strain of HSV triggers the immune system to make a different set of antibodies, selective antibody blood tests are required to detect each strain.
MYTH: HSV 1 can only infect the lips and HSV 2 can only infect the genitals. This is FALSE!
FACT: HSV 1 and HSV 2 can infect ANY surface of the body. HSV 1 and HSV 2 can infect both lips and the genitals. HSV can also infect the eye, inside the nose, the face, and anus and even the fingers from picking HSV sores.
MYTH: HSV 1 is not contagious or is less contagious than HSV 2, and HSV 1 is not sexually transmitted where as HSV 2 is only sexually transmitted. This is FALSE!
FACT: HSV 1 and HSV 2 can both be equally contagious and easily transmitted to another person, or to other parts of your own body through direct contact with HSV sores. A parent with an HSV cold sore on their lip can transmit HSV to their child by giving their child an innocent kiss. HSV is frequently transmitted from an outbreak on one partner's lips to the other partner's genitals during oral sex. One of my clients had a small HSV out break on his lip for the first time and did not know what it was. He thought it was just a pimple. He accidentally transmitted HSV from a cold sore on his lip to his genitals because he did not wash his hands after touching the HSV sore on his lip before proceeding to touch his penis to urinate. He also accidentally infected his eye in this manner by not washing his hands after touching his HSV lip sore and then inserting a contact lens. He additionally accidentally infected the inside of his nose as well in the same manner while blowing his nose. I had another client who infected the tip of his finger with HSV from picking at a herpes sore. His finger had had broken skin from a hangnail which became infected. Both Herpes 1 & 2 are contagious and can be to spread to other parts of the body.
Myth: HSV 1 looks and feels different than HSV 2. This is FALSE!
FACT: HSV 1 and HSV 2 cause the exact same symptoms. They look and feel exactly the same. No one can tell if an outbreak is HSV 1 or HSV 2 by looking. You can only tell by testing.
Myth: HSV 2 produces outbreaks that are more severe and long lasting than HSV 1. This is FALSE!
FACT: HSV 1 and HSV 2 can be equally severe and take the same length of time to heal. While some people do experience HSV 2 outbreaks as more severe that HSV1, I have had clients with genital HSV 2 whose minor infrequent outbreaks lasted only a day or two, where as I have had other clients with HSV 1 on the lips whose large severe painful monthly outbreaks lasted two to three weeks and would reoccur monthly. I have found people's experiences with HSV to be very individual.
Myth: If you have HSV 1 it can change into HSV 2. This is FALSE!
FACT: HSV 1 cannot change into HSV 2, and HSV 2 cannot change into HSV 1 in the body. They are two separate strains.
Myth: If you have HSV on your mouth, you could have it out break in the genital area. This is FALSE!
FACT: HSV 1 & HSV 2 are not transported in your blood stream from one part of your body to another causing outbreaks in other areas. HSV can only be transmitted to another part of your body if you, for example, touch active HSV sores, get the virus on your fingers, and then touch and infect another part of your body with those fingers. Thoroughly washing your hands with warm soapy water after touching a Herpes sore helps to prevent transmitting it to another part of your body or to another person.
Herpes Simplex Virus (HSV) and Safer Sex
Safer sex dramatically helps reduce the risk of sexual transmission of HSV 1 and HSV 2. If you touch an HSV sore and don't wash your hands vigorously with warm soapy water before touching a partner's genitals you can transmit HSV from your fingers to a partners genitals or to your own genitals. If your fingers touch HSV sores while putting on a condom and then touch the outside of the condom while rolling it on to the penis you can transfer the virus from the penis, to your fingers, to the outside of the condom which can then infect a partner during sex. I have a client who feels certain that this is how she became infected with herpes. She and her partner used a condom correctly when he was having a herpes outbreak. The condom did not tear or slide off. The Herpes virus she believes got on the outside of the condom accidentally as he rolled the condom onto his penis.
When a person becomes infected with HSV, the virus enters the skins cells and nerve endings. The HSV infection damages the cells causes blisters and sores to form that can take anywhere from several days to several weeks to heal. Once the sores have healed, HSV travels from the nerve endings at the surface down nerve pathways deeper into the body where it lays dormant or inactive in the spinal column. Later HSV can become active again. When it does it travels up the same nerve pathways to the same surface area of the skin causing another outbreak. This is why outbreaks reoccur in the same spot over and over.
HSV tends to reoccur following periods of stress, excessive sun exposure to any part of the body (not just the part of the body that has the outbreaks), irregular eating and lifestyle habits such as excessive intake of sugar, coffee, alcohol, hot spicy foods, fired foods, manufactured non-food fats such margarine, cigarette smoking and toxic chemical exposure.
Herpes Family Viruses Include:
- Herpes simplex virus (HSV): Causes fever blisters (also called cold sores), and genital herpes.
- Herpes varacella zoster: Causes chickenpox and is the same virus that can later cause shingles.
- Epstein Barr virus (EBV), Cytomegalovirus (CMV), and Human Herpes Viruses (HHV): These are systemic viral infections that travel in the blood stream through out the body causing mono like symptoms and syndromes and are sometimes associated with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS). HHV 6 may be associated with lymphomas. HHV 7 may be associated with periodontal disease. HHV 8 has been linked to Kaposi's sarcoma.
Herpes Simplex Virus Symptoms
At the beginning of an HSV outbreak a tingly itchy and sometimes red irritation typically forms on the skin. Within a matter of hours, tiny itchy blisters appear which break open, usually within one to two days. The broken blisters cause sores that ooze a clear watery pale yellow fluid, which becomes sticky as it dries. The sores are usually itchy and painful forming a thick pale yellow scab over the surface that turns darker and crusty as days pass. It is common for lymph nodes near the HSV outbreak to swell in response to the infection. Swollen lymph nodes can feel like tender kidney bean shaped bumps beneath the skin. They are usually located under the chin if the HSV outbreak is on the lips or in the groin if the HSV outbreak is on the genitals. An HSV outbreak may last anywhere from a couple of days to three weeks or longer. HSV sores often take much longer to heal than the average scrape, cut or sore. During the outbreak HSV can spread to neighboring skin. A healthy immune system will fight back against the infection to help heal the HSV sores. Herpes symptoms can include:
- At first, tingly itchy and sometimes red irritation typically forms on the skin.
- Itchy painful blisters and sores usually on the penis, vulva, mouth, anus or eye.
- Both herpes 1 and herpes 2 can infect any surface area of the body.
Who should test for herpes?
- If you have any of the above symptoms after sexual contact with a partner you should test for herpes.
- If you've had unsafe sex with partners who's sexual past is unknown you should test for herpes.
- If you have any doubts after sex, even if you have NO symptoms, you should test for herpes.
How Herpes Testing Is Done
Currently there are three main ways of testing for Herpes Simplex Virus (HSV):Herpes Simplex Virus Culture- This test is done by swabbing a rash or sore during a suspected outbreak with a swab that is sent to a lab in a special viral culture media test tube. The lab then grows the culture to look for evidence of HSV. This test is most accurate if it is done as soon after the appearance of a rash of blisters or sores as possible. The test can distinguish between HSV 1 and HSV 2 with a very high rate of accuracy. If you have blisters or sores this is considered the best method of testing for HSV. The results take about 3-5 working days in most cases.
Herpes 1 & 2 Antibody Blood Tests - There are several HSV antibody blood tests, some of which are more accurate than others. The HerpeSelect antibody blood test technology, which looks for HSV IgG antibodies, has a high rate of accuracy in not only detecting HSV antibodies, but also distinguishing between HSV 1 and HSV 2 if there are high enough levels of antibodies for the test to tell them apart. It takes most people at least one month after becoming infected with HSV to develop enough antibodies in their blood for the antibodies to be easily detected by this blood test. It can take a longer or shorter amount of time for some. HSV IgM antibody blood tests are designed to try to identify antibodies from a very recent Herpes outbreak. This test is notoriously inaccurate in many adults but can be helpful in testing infants. HSV antibody test results usually take 2-3 working days in most cases.
Herpes 1 & 2 Western Blot Test - This test is currently the most accurate in distinguishing between HSV 1 and HSV 2. The test requires a tube of blood. The Herpes Western Blot has a very high rate of accuracy one month after becoming infected with HSV, all though it can sometimes be detected in a shorter amount of time. The results usually take about 5-7 working days in most cases.
Herpes Treatment
Herpes can be treated and controlled with a variety of treatment methods. Mainstream medical treatments include prescription antiviral drugs such as Acyclovir (also called Zovirax) and Valtrex (also called Valcyclovir). These antiviral drugs so not cure Herpes and do not eliminate it from the body. Antiviral drugs try to slow the Herpes virus down by attempting to interfere the the Herpes virus' genetic material. Alternative medical treatments include medicinal nutritional strategies, nutritional supplements, herbs, acupuncture, homeopathy, amino acids, minerals, etc. Alternative medical treatments are designed to support the immune system to help the body fight back and heal itself.
Herpes Transmission
It is widely believed by most medical experts that HSV is contagious starting from the time the virus begins to travel to the surface of the skin, at the very beginning of an outbreak, causing an initial itching tingling and redness, called the "prodromal phase". When HSV blisters and sores are present HSV is particularly contagious. HSV continues to be contagious until the HSV scabs are completely gone and the skin is totally healed and smooth. During the time when the virus is traveling to the surface of the skin and when sores and scabs are present the virus is said to be "shedding" (meaning present or "shedding" from the surface of the skin) and therefore contagious. It is during this time that the virus can be transmitted to a partner or another part of the body.
The majority of people who have sexually become infected with HSV know they became infected from unprotected sex with a partner who was having an outbreak at the time. However, some people believe that they may have become infected with HSV even though their partner insists they did not have an outbreak. There could be several explanations for this.
In some cases a partner's HSV might not produce symptoms as it starts to come to the surface of their skin. Having unprotected sex at this stage can transmit HSV even though there are no sores. While some people don't notice symptoms at this stage, most people do feel a tingling itchy feeling alerting them to the beginning of an outbreak so precautions can be taken to avoid transmission.
Another possibility is that the person became infected with HSV from a previous partner but did not experience an outbreak right away. While most people have their first outbreak within one to three weeks after becoming infected, it is possible for several years to pass before an outbreak develops.
Additionally, some people experience HSV outbreaks that are very minor or mistake them for another skin condition. This can result in a person falsely believing that they do not have HSV and accidentally passing it to their partner
Finally, some people simply may not tell their partner they are having an HSV outbreak at the time of sex, and deny it later if questioned about it.
Myths and Facts about Herpes Simplex Virus (HSV) Types 1 and 2
There is NO significant difference between HSV1 and HSV2 other than the fact that labs can now more easily distinguish between the two types with tests like the HerpeSelect antibody blood test and the even more selective Herpes Western Blot test. Because each strain of HSV triggers the immune system to make a different set of antibodies, selective antibody blood tests are required to detect each strain.
MYTH: HSV 1 can only infect the lips and HSV 2 can only infect the genitals. This is FALSE!
FACT: HSV 1 and HSV 2 can infect ANY surface of the body. HSV 1 and HSV 2 can infect both lips and the genitals. HSV can also infect the eye, inside the nose, the face, and anus and even the fingers from picking HSV sores.
MYTH: HSV 1 is not contagious or is less contagious than HSV 2, and HSV 1 is not sexually transmitted where as HSV 2 is only sexually transmitted. This is FALSE!
FACT: HSV 1 and HSV 2 can both be equally contagious and easily transmitted to another person, or to other parts of your own body through direct contact with HSV sores. A parent with an HSV cold sore on their lip can transmit HSV to their child by giving their child an innocent kiss. HSV is frequently transmitted from an outbreak on one partner's lips to the other partner's genitals during oral sex. One of my clients had a small HSV out break on his lip for the first time and did not know what it was. He thought it was just a pimple. He accidentally transmitted HSV from a cold sore on his lip to his genitals because he did not wash his hands after touching the HSV sore on his lip before proceeding to touch his penis to urinate. He also accidentally infected his eye in this manner by not washing his hands after touching his HSV lip sore and then inserting a contact lens. He additionally accidentally infected the inside of his nose as well in the same manner while blowing his nose. I had another client who infected the tip of his finger with HSV from picking at a herpes sore. His finger had had broken skin from a hangnail which became infected. Both Herpes 1 & 2 are contagious and can be to spread to other parts of the body.
Myth: HSV 1 looks and feels different than HSV 2. This is FALSE!
FACT: HSV 1 and HSV 2 cause the exact same symptoms. They look and feel exactly the same. No one can tell if an outbreak is HSV 1 or HSV 2 by looking. You can only tell by testing.
Myth: HSV 2 produces outbreaks that are more severe and long lasting than HSV 1. This is FALSE!
FACT: HSV 1 and HSV 2 can be equally severe and take the same length of time to heal. While some people do experience HSV 2 outbreaks as more severe that HSV1, I have had clients with genital HSV 2 whose minor infrequent outbreaks lasted only a day or two, where as I have had other clients with HSV 1 on the lips whose large severe painful monthly outbreaks lasted two to three weeks and would reoccur monthly. I have found people's experiences with HSV to be very individual.
Myth: If you have HSV 1 it can change into HSV 2. This is FALSE!
FACT: HSV 1 cannot change into HSV 2, and HSV 2 cannot change into HSV 1 in the body. They are two separate strains.
Myth: If you have HSV on your mouth, you could have it out break in the genital area. This is FALSE!
FACT: HSV 1 & HSV 2 are not transported in your blood stream from one part of your body to another causing outbreaks in other areas. HSV can only be transmitted to another part of your body if you, for example, touch active HSV sores, get the virus on your fingers, and then touch and infect another part of your body with those fingers. Thoroughly washing your hands with warm soapy water after touching a Herpes sore helps to prevent transmitting it to another part of your body or to another person.
Herpes Simplex Virus (HSV) and Safer Sex
Safer sex dramatically helps reduce the risk of sexual transmission of HSV 1 and HSV 2. If you touch an HSV sore and don't wash your hands vigorously with warm soapy water before touching a partner's genitals you can transmit HSV from your fingers to a partners genitals or to your own genitals. If your fingers touch HSV sores while putting on a condom and then touch the outside of the condom while rolling it on to the penis you can transfer the virus from the penis, to your fingers, to the outside of the condom which can then infect a partner during sex. I have a client who feels certain that this is how she became infected with herpes. She and her partner used a condom correctly when he was having a herpes outbreak. The condom did not tear or slide off. The Herpes virus she believes got on the outside of the condom accidentally as he rolled the condom onto his penis.