"Cold on the lips" - the common name for herpes. It appears on the skin in violation of immune processes, exacerbation of chronic diseases, hypothermia. There are quite a few ways to deal with lip sores, their effectiveness and the speed at which results are achieved is different.
Causes and symptoms of herpes on the lips
The main reason why there are sores on the lips is the presence of the herpes virus in the body. They become infected through household contact, the use of common hygiene items, kisses and sexual contact with infected people.
The virus can persist for a long time in the human body and not cause any symptoms. With strong immunity, the virus circulates asymptomatically in the blood, but there are no cases of self-healing from it.
Manifestations of the disease occur when the general or local immunity is weakened - hypothermia, exacerbation of chronic diseases, microtraumas of the skin on and around the lips, too large a dose of infection.
The most noticeable symptom of herpes on the lips is the appearance of a rash. Rashes have the appearance of small bubbles with transparent contents, which are easily opened and leave behind eroded areas.
Localization - the entire surface of the lips, the corners of the mouth, the skin of the face next to the lips. This location of the rash due to the fact that the skin of the lips is most sensitive and susceptible to adverse environmental effects.
The rash is accompanied by severe itching, dryness and peeling of the skin around the lips. With improper skin care, painful cracks in the skin can occur, they heal rather slowly. Applying moisturizers and hygienic lipstick with herpes brings a short-term effect.
Rashes can occur not only on the lips, but also on the nasal mucosa, causing painful dryness of the mucous membrane, irritation that can interfere with breathing. A rash in the nose can block the nasolacrimal duct, causing tearing, or climb it and spread to the conjunctiva of the eye.
Herpetic conjunctivitis causes dry eyes, redness, clear discharge, visual impairment, foreign body sensation. The treatment of this condition is a much more complicated problem than the removal of lesions on the lips.
How to quickly cure herpes on the lips: the advice of doctors
There is a wide variety of ointments, creams and medicinal lipsticks for herpes - zovirax, acyclovir, and others. They have an antiviral effect, stopping the reproduction of the pathogen in the skin cells. Additionally, corticosteroid ointments (celestoderm) are used to relieve inflammation and itching.
After the acute phase of inflammation has passed, cosmetic products are prescribed to soften the skin, treat microcracks and residual effects after erosion.
In that case, if the rash is accompanied by intolerable itching, or the number of elements of the rash is so large that it disrupts the patient's usual lifestyle, tablets are prescribed - antiviral, antiallergic, soothing, and anti-inflammatory.
The intake of antiviral drugs is also prescribed for the prevention of exacerbations. However, drugs that completely destroy the virus do not exist, but treatment allows you to stop the multiplication of viruses in the body, and reduce the number of exacerbations.
In some cases, minor eruptions pass on their own without treatment, but letting the course of the disease take place by itself is not the best way out. The presence of the pathogen in the blood becomes the cause of persistent exacerbations that occur with the slightest disturbance of immunity.
For this reason, herpes is considered a chronic disease, and cannot be cured once and for all. However, the need to treat the presence of the virus and the exacerbation of the disease remains.
What categorically can not be done with the appearance of herpes on the lips
If herpes appeared on the lips, then you should not only treat the manifestations of the disease, but also take the necessary precautions to reduce the risk of infection of those around you with a viral infection and avoid self-infection.
First of all, you need to allocate yourself a personal towel and dishes that will not be used by other family members. Even if all of them are infected with an infection, an additional dose of the pathogen can lead to exacerbation. For the same reason, kisses and oral-genital sex should be postponed until recovery.
To avoid self-infection, do not touch the lips, especially in the area of rashes. And even antiviral ointments should be applied with cosmetic sticks, not fingers.
Squeeze or pierce the bubbles and remove the crust should not be - it can lead to the spread of viral lesions in neighboring areas of the skin and the addition of a bacterial infection.
Hands should be washed as often as possible, especially after touching the face and lips. In no case it is impossible to wet contact lenses with saliva - herpes lesions of the cornea and conjunctiva are extremely difficult to treat.
Moreover, such treatment with contact lenses can spoil them, and therefore prohibited by the manufacturer.
These recommendations do not provide absolute protection, but they can limit the spread of lesions and prevent infection of healthy family members. If two or more people in the family are sick with herpes on the lips, then individual dishes and towels should be allocated to each of them, the rule "does not stick infection to infection", does not work here, but can only have the opposite effect.
Rapid Drug Treatment
In order to quickly cure herpes exacerbation, it is important to start treatment early. Usually, people who are prone to frequent exacerbations recognize signs of its onset in advance — severe itching and dry skin that appear even before eruptions. So, remember how to get rid of the sore in 1 day.
In this case, you need to keep in the home medicine cabinet any of the ointments with acyclovir. It should be applied to the lips when itching. This should be done an hour before bedtime, and after applying the ointment, do not eat until the ointment is absorbed into the skin.
If the itch persists the next day, the procedure should be repeated in the morning. In this case, the rash on the face will not appear, and the exacerbation subsides even before the start. If the rash has already appeared, then hope for a quick result during the day is not necessary.
Herpes on the lips - treatment of folk remedies
Traditional medicine has a large arsenal of tools to combat colds on the lips. For the most part, they do not affect the virus in any way, but they have a wound-healing, anesthetic, softening and antiseptic effect.
Hydrogen peroxide, a solution of brilliant green, various alcohol solutions are applied to the opened bubbles.
Propolis ointment is used for opened and not opened vesicles as a softening, antipruritic and antiseptic agent.
Bubbles open faster than without treatment, erosion heals quickly, itching and peeling pass and do not become a cause of microcracks. Less risk of bacterial infection.
There are more extreme ways - the use of onion juice or garlic, lemon juice, but they are associated with very strong pain, so the need for their use is questionable.
How to treat herpes on the lip during pregnancy?
During pregnancy, the use of local remedies for the treatment of herpes - ointments, creams, applications is acceptable. Taking the drug inside is contraindicated because they have toxicity to the fetus.
For the prevention of herpes exacerbations during pregnancy, it is recommended to eat foods containing vitamins - fresh fruits, berries, vegetables in various culinary treatments. Especially recommended berries viburnum, wild rose and hawthorn.
You can take inside the dogrose infusions, decoctions of calendula, lemon balm, motherwort, thyme and other herbs. Their use allows you to improve immunity and avoid exacerbations, and if the rash still appeared, then their treatment with both external and internal means is faster.
To enhance the immunity of a pregnant woman requires a walk in the fresh air - in parks and squares, forest belts. Spa treatment will be useful. Taking vitamins recommended for pregnant women will also have a positive effect.
It should be noted that in pregnant women herpes exacerbations can lead to serious consequences. For example, during this period, herpes more often turns into a generalized form, dangerous to the mother and fetus.
And then intravenous administration of antiviral drugs is prescribed, with the threat of bacterial sepsis, antibiotics are added to them. In the case of severe herpes lesions of the fetus, abortion may be recommended.
In a fetus, a herpetic infection causes serious damage to the nervous system, especially the brain, so before planning a pregnancy, it is recommended to be tested for the herpes virus and if it is detected, undergo a course of treatment.
Prevention of herpes on the lips
In order for a cold on the lips not to bother with its appearance, it is necessary to lead a healthy lifestyle. Eating foods rich in vitamins, moderate physical activity, timely treatment of chronic diseases, preventing hypothermia, and treatment of the common cold will help to avoid its manifestations on the lips.
To prevent infection with the herpes virus is very difficult - according to statistics, it is in the blood of 70% of the population, or more. Therefore, it can be argued that the carrier of the virus is surrounded by almost any person.
Important to prevent infection is the observance of the rules of personal hygiene, the use of your own towels and dishes, orderliness in sexual life.
In case of an aggravation, it is useful to have all the necessary ointments in the home medicine cabinet - both antiviral, and anti-inflammatory, and cosmetic. Their early use will reduce the exacerbation or stop it even before it starts.
In the next video - additional information on how to treat herpes on the lips.
