Two things that should not come together are your lip and a fever blister. Fever blisters are painful, little sores that can bring your love life to a halt for anywhere from 5 to 7 days. Is there a cure for fever blisters? At this time, unfortunately the answer is “no.”
Why You Have Fever Blisters
You have fever blisters because you were exposed to a virus named herpes simplex virus type I (HSV-1). This virus is highly contagious and you most likely contracted it when you were a child between the ages of six months and 10 years. HSV-1 is spread through droplets of moisture from the mouth, from skin-to-skin contact and via infected saliva. In other words, you probably contacted it as the result of a kiss from someone who had a fever blister.
Once you have been exposed to herpes simplex virus type I the virus will lie dormant in a nerve located near your cheekbone. In some cases, the virus will remain dormant and never cause a fever blister reoccurance. It is estimated that nearly 80% of the world's population has HSV-1, many of whom do not even know they have the virus. For others, the virus will occasionally travel down the nerve to the surface of our skin, which causes a fever blister to erupt. It is estimated that 15% to 30% of the US population suffers from reoccuring fever blisters.
HSV-1 And Prodromes
If you have the HSV-1 virus and fever blisters, you may be lucky enough to have what are known as prodromes. This can be a tingling or burning sensation that occurs before a fever blister erupts. Prodromes serve as an early warning sign that you are about to have a fever blister. Prodromes can occur anywhere from two days to several hours before the fever blister erupts, which gives you time to begin treatment and to reduce the fever blister severity and healing time.
What Causes Fever Blisters Reoccurances?
There can be any number of factors that cause fever blister reoccurances. Studies have found that some people's recurrences are caused by exposure to sunlight. Other triggering factors include accidents, other types of trauma, stress and other illnesses such as a cold, flu, eczema or fever. If sunlight appears to be causing your recurrences, you can reduce the number of them by using a sunscreen on your lips whenever you go into the sun. Or if your fever blisters seem to be related to stress, you may be able to find ways to reduce the stress in your life. Beyond this, you might try keeping a sort of diary of what is going on in your life before your fever blisters erupt. This way you might be able to determine what is your particular triggering event and then work to eliminate it.
Why There Is No Cure For Fever Blisters
The big problem with finding a cure for fever blisters is the skin lesion is only the visible sign that you have a virus named herpes simplex virus type I (HSV-1). Once you have been exposed to this virus, it silently lies dormant in a nerve near your check bone. The virus may occasionally travel down the nerve to cause a fever blister outbreak. Getting rid of the virus hiding in the nerve is the biggest hurdle in finding a cure for fever blisters.
Research On A Cure For Fever Blisters
There are scientists working to find a way to prevent or find a cure for fever blisters. Some are trying to develop a vaccine against the HSV-1 virus. Several labs are developing and testing antiviral drugs designed to hamper or to prevent fever blister outbreaks. Other researchers are working to develop ointments that make it easier for the antiviral drugs to penetrate the skin. For example, Acyclovir is an antiviral drug that can prevent the virus from multiplying. It has been approved by the FDA for use in treating genital herpes and it may soon be approved for use in treating the oral herpes.
While there is no cure for fever blisters, there is hope that someday there will be a fever blister treatment that will either prevent them from occurring or that will at least reduce the symptoms and the frequency of the fever blister outbreaks.
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