3 ms·

You have a point. I am not an expert on the topic, but it seems to me that an asymptomatic HSV carrier cannot infect anyone and, thus, there's no health problem

by TriinT 17y ago

You have a point. I am not an expert on the topic, but it seems to me that an asymptomatic HSV carrier cannot infect anyone and, thus, there's no health problem, and no negative effect on one's life. Yes, it's possible to have many sexual partners and be healthy. One only needs to compare the rates of HSV and other STD's in Sweden (where sex education is serious) to places like rural U.S. (where religion, not common sense, dominates). Yes, there's a stigma associated with HSV and other similar virus. Epstein-Barr causes mononucleosis, but there's less stigma associated with it, perhaps because it's the "kiss disease", and kissing is apparently more innocent than fornication. On the other hand, I think stigmas are there for a reason. A legacy of a not so distant past where STD's where non-curable and non-treatable. Promiscuity is a moral issue, so I won't discuss it. I think one's sex life is better without any haunting STD's, and that's why I think it's not responsible to say that herpes is totally kosher. If one catches it, it's not the end of the world, but it's not a pleasant experience either.

83457 17y ago
"it seems to me that an asymptomatic HSV carrier cannot infect anyone" Smacks forehead ... That is one of the big reason herpes is so wide spread. It gets pased on by people that aren't having, and may never have, an outbreak.
- TriinT 17y ago
  If such people never have an outbreak, how can they shed the virus? Is the virus present in the mucosae even in the absence of visible blisters?
  - dunmalg 17y ago
    yes
    - barry-cotter 17y ago
      But not all the time.
- billswift 17y ago
  I had shingles (a herpes zoster re-eruption) in 2000. Initially, I wasn't sure if it was shingles or a somehow widespread eruption of cold sores (herpes simplex), so I did some reading up on both. Neither is contagious except when they are presenting, ie when sores are present.
  - swolchok 17y ago
    Your claim appears to be false -- genital HSV can be transmitted whenever the virus is being shed, which can happen in the absence of symptoms. Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herpes_simplex_virus http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herpes_simplex_virus) disagrees at the end of the first paragraph, above the ToC. I'm at a major research university, so I was able to check their citation and confirm that it does in fact 1) appear to be a seminar/survey from a legitimate scientific journal (Lancet) and 2) say that viral shedding in the absence of sores is possible, citing what appear to be first-hand studies. I'll reproduce the citations here: 60 Lang A, Nikolich-Zugich J. Development and migration of protective CD8+ T cells into the nervous system following ocular herpes simplex virus-1 infection. J Immunol 2005; 174: 2919–25. 62 Wald A, Zeh J, Selke S, Ashley RL, Corey L. Virologic characteristics of subclinical and symptomatic genital herpes infections. N Engl J Med 1995; 333: 770–75. I was able to locate a (I think) public copy of the second study, by Wald et al.: http://depts.washington.edu/herpes/php_uploads/publications/Virologic%20characteristics.pdf http://depts.washington.edu/herpes/php_uploads/publications/... The abstract of the paper reports that "Among women with genital HSV-2 infection, subclinical shedding occurred on a mean of 2 percent of the days." Subclinical shedding is defined in the body of the paper, specifically under the "Statistical Analysis" heading on the first page, as "the isolation of HSV from the cervix, vulva, or rectum in the absence of genital or perianal lesions noted by the subjects or the clinicians." In summary, at least one study has proven that herpes shedding is possible without the presence of sores. I apologize for going to so much trouble to prove you wrong, but it's dangerous for people to be wrong about the possibility of transmission of STDs.
    - TriinT 17y ago
      To be entirely precise, there's no such thing as genital HSV. There's HSV1 and HSV2. If I remember correctly, HSV1 is usually what is referred to as "lip herpes", while HSV2 is usually called "genital herpes". However, one can have sores in other parts of the body.
teilo 17y ago
You can indeed shed the virus without having a visible outbreak. All that is necessary for infection is having sex with an infected partner when they are shedding. Unless you have lab equipment at your disposal, you would never know.

by TriinT 17y ago

83457 17y ago

"it seems to me that an asymptomatic HSV carrier cannot infect anyone" Smacks forehead ... That is one of the big reason herpes is so wide spread. It gets pased on by people that aren't having, and may never have, an outbreak.

TriinT 17y ago
If such people never have an outbreak, how can they shed the virus? Is the virus present in the mucosae even in the absence of visible blisters?
- dunmalg 17y ago
  yes
  - barry-cotter 17y ago
    But not all the time.
billswift 17y ago
I had shingles (a herpes zoster re-eruption) in 2000. Initially, I wasn't sure if it was shingles or a somehow widespread eruption of cold sores (herpes simplex), so I did some reading up on both. Neither is contagious except when they are presenting, ie when sores are present.
- swolchok 17y ago
  Your claim appears to be false -- genital HSV can be transmitted whenever the virus is being shed, which can happen in the absence of symptoms. Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herpes_simplex_virus http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herpes_simplex_virus) disagrees at the end of the first paragraph, above the ToC. I'm at a major research university, so I was able to check their citation and confirm that it does in fact 1) appear to be a seminar/survey from a legitimate scientific journal (Lancet) and 2) say that viral shedding in the absence of sores is possible, citing what appear to be first-hand studies. I'll reproduce the citations here: 60 Lang A, Nikolich-Zugich J. Development and migration of protective CD8+ T cells into the nervous system following ocular herpes simplex virus-1 infection. J Immunol 2005; 174: 2919–25. 62 Wald A, Zeh J, Selke S, Ashley RL, Corey L. Virologic characteristics of subclinical and symptomatic genital herpes infections. N Engl J Med 1995; 333: 770–75. I was able to locate a (I think) public copy of the second study, by Wald et al.: http://depts.washington.edu/herpes/php_uploads/publications/Virologic%20characteristics.pdf http://depts.washington.edu/herpes/php_uploads/publications/... The abstract of the paper reports that "Among women with genital HSV-2 infection, subclinical shedding occurred on a mean of 2 percent of the days." Subclinical shedding is defined in the body of the paper, specifically under the "Statistical Analysis" heading on the first page, as "the isolation of HSV from the cervix, vulva, or rectum in the absence of genital or perianal lesions noted by the subjects or the clinicians." In summary, at least one study has proven that herpes shedding is possible without the presence of sores. I apologize for going to so much trouble to prove you wrong, but it's dangerous for people to be wrong about the possibility of transmission of STDs.
  - TriinT 17y ago
    To be entirely precise, there's no such thing as genital HSV. There's HSV1 and HSV2. If I remember correctly, HSV1 is usually what is referred to as "lip herpes", while HSV2 is usually called "genital herpes". However, one can have sores in other parts of the body.

teilo 17y ago

You can indeed shed the virus without having a visible outbreak. All that is necessary for infection is having sex with an infected partner when they are shedding. Unless you have lab equipment at your disposal, you would never know.