How Do I Get Tested For Herpes

When Should You Consider Getting Tested

Herpes is a sneaky, deceitful virus. It hides deep inside your nerve cells for unpredictable periods of time before triggering visible symptoms. In many cases, it infects the body and spreads to others without any obvious signs at all. As many as 90 percent of people infected with herpes are unaware they have the virus because theyve never experienced an outbreak.

People who dont have symptoms are more likely to transmit the herpes virus through a phenomenon known as asymptomatic shedding. This occurs when the virus sheds from the skin and spreads to others, even when no sores are present. Asymptomatic shedding is undetectable as there are no signs or symptoms, but it’s real.

According to research, at least 70% of infected people experience asymptomatic shedding of HSV-1 at least once a month. Many may even shed the herpes virus without symptoms more than six times per month.

Given that the herpes virus doesnt always trigger outbreaks and symptoms, testing is an important way to monitor your health. The CDC recommends testing if you are experiencing symptoms that could be related to herpes or if you recently had sex with a new partner who has genital herpes.

Remember, its possible that early herpes symptoms may not seem related to herpes. An initial herpes outbreak causes flu-like symptoms, including fatigue, fever and chills. These symptoms may be paired with pain, itching and redness around the affected area.

Should I Get Routinely Tested For Herpes

The CDC doesnt recommend routine testing for herpes. Individuals who are diagnosed with genital herpes but who do not have symptoms typically dont change their sexual behavior. Therefore, routine testing has not been effective at preventing the spread of the virus. It is also possible to get a false positive result from a herpes test, which is another reason the CDC doesnt encourage routine use of the test.

Can I Still Have Sex If I Have Herpes

If you have herpes, you should talk to your sex partner about their risk. Using condoms may help lower this risk but it will not get rid of the risk completely. Having sores or other symptoms of herpes can increase your risk of spreading the disease. Even if you do not have any symptoms, you can still infect your sex partners.

You may have concerns about how genital herpes will impact your health, sex life, and relationships. While herpes is not curable, it is important to know that it is manageable with medicine. Daily suppressive therapy can lower your risk of spreading the virus to others. Talk to a healthcare provider about your concerns and treatment options.

A genital herpes diagnosis may affect how you will feel about current or future sexual relationships. Knowing how to talk to sexual partners about STDs is important.

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Questions For Your Doctor After At

The following questions about the results of at-home genital and oral herpes testing may be helpful for patients to discuss with their doctor:

• Is my at-home herpes test result reliable?
• What is the most likely explanation for my test result?
• Are there any follow-up tests that you recommend?
• How should I discuss my test result with sexual partners?

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Things You Can Do To Help

Antivirals are only designed to stop the virus multiplying and will not help your discomfort in the short term. For this, there are a few simple things you can do to ease the discomfort and speed up the healing process:

• Apply an ice pack or ice cubes in a plastic bag
• Take a cool shower to soothe the blisters
• Apply a local, over-the-counter anaesthetic cream such as lidocaine
• Gently bathe the area with warm salt water
• Carefully pat the area dry
• If weeing is painful, go to the toilet in a warm bath or shower
• Wash your hands before and after touching the infected area to avoid introducing bacteria
• Keep hydrated and drink extra fluids
• Wear loose, cotton clothing
• Use an over-the-counter painkiller to help with pain and discomfort

Avoid washing your genitals too often when you have an outbreak, as this wont help to alleviate the symptoms.

The antivirals are safe to use with hormonal contraception but talk to the person prescribing the treatment to make sure.

Genital herpes can be safely treated during pregnancy. It is important to discuss with your midwife if you have, or have had, herpes infections. The treatment you receive may depend on whether it is your first herpes infection and also where in the pregnancy you are but your midwife will advise you.

WARNING

It is strongly advised that you do not have any sexual contact before or during an outbreak and for a week after your symptoms have completely gone.

• Talking to people about STIs

• STIs and Stigma

The Different Types Of Herpes

Herpes, or the herpes simplex virus, is a highly contagious and common virus that causes cold sores and genital herpes. You may become infected with herpes simplex virus type 1 or herpes simplex virus type 2 . Each type of virus causes unique symptoms, so its important to understand their differences.

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How Can I Protect Myself

The best way to protect yourself is to avoid oral or genital contact with partners with active herpes symptoms, such as a cold sore or genital sore or blister.

Use condoms consistently as herpes can be present on the skin without causing any symptoms and be passed on by someone who has no sores present.

Use silicone-based lubricants to avoid skin trauma.

If you have herpes, talk to your doctor about taking suppressive therapy – this will reduce the risk of passing it on by 50%.

How Can I Prevent Herpes Outbreaks

If you have lots of herpes outbreaks, your doctor may tell you to take medicine every day this is called suppressive therapy. It can help prevent future herpes outbreaks, and lower your chances of giving herpes to your partners.

Whether or not you take medicine to treat herpes, taking care of yourself by eating healthy foods, getting enough sleep, and avoiding stress might help keep future outbreaks from popping up.

No one knows for sure what triggers genital herpes outbreaks. Other infections, surgery, sex, your period, skin irritations, and stress may cause outbreaks. Sunburns, injuries to your lips, or other infections can cause oral herpes flare-ups. Try to avoid getting sunburned if you have oral herpes.

Genital herpes outbreaks usually happen less often and become shorter and weaker after a few years whether or not you get treated.

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What Is The Process Of Testing For Herpes

If you have a blister or sore, your local healthcare provider will test for herpes by taking a swab of fluid from the sore. Your doctor will send this sample to a laboratory for a viral culture to determine whether you have herpes. Its best to get the sore tested within 48 hours of its appearance.

If you dont have sores, your doctor can take a blood sample to test for herpes. This test looks for herpes simplex virus antibodies which let your healthcare provider know that you have had a past herpes infection.

Nurx offers prescription cold sore and genital herpes treatment for as little as $0 with insurance or $15 per month without insurance.

Another way to test for herpes is with a polymerase chain reaction test. This test uses PCR to make a copy of your DNA using blood, spinal tissue, a tissue sample from a suspected herpes sore. This test can then examine your DNA for the presence of HSV and identify which type of HSV is present.

So Should You Get Tested For Herpes Even If You Dont Have Symptoms

Doctors fall in two camps here. While a herpes infection is generally relatively benign and no big deal, in my opinion, its best for folks to know the state of their own body, says Dr. Gersh.

Other doctors counter that theres no benefit to herpes testing without the presence of symptoms. From a medical standpoint, is unnecessary, says Sheila Loanzon, M.D., author of Yes, I Have Herpes and a board-certified ob-gyn with more than 15 years of patient and personal experience diagnosing herpes. And due to the stigma of the virus, the diagnosis can be detrimental to a persons wellbeing and create unnecessary shame, mental-anguish, and stress. Considering stress has been linked to a host of health issues such as increased risk of stroke, chronic diseases, heart attack, and more, a diagnosis may actually do more harm than good.

Whether or not you ask your doctor to test you for herpes is up to you. Symptoms or not, you absolutely have the right to know your HSV status. So, if youre curious, take a stand and explicitly ask your doctor to test you for herpes. Note: At-home STD testing is now super easy, and many companies include an at-home herpes testusually a PCR blood testas part of their offerings. That said, home herpes testing offerings vary by company for example, some only test for one strain of the virus, some offering post-diagnosis counseling, etc.

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Herpes In Newborn Babies

Both HSV-1 and HSV-2 can cause significant infections in newborn babies. Neonatal herpes is an uncommon but serious infection, where the herpes virus is transmitted to the baby during birth.

The risk of transmission to a newborn is highest when a woman acquires an initial herpes infection in the last 3 months of pregnancy. In such cases, a caesarean delivery is recommended.

A woman with recurrent genital herpes has a low risk of transmitting the virus to their newborn. A caesarean delivery would be considered only if visible HSV ulcers are present at the time of the delivery.

During pregnancy, to reduce the risk of infection:

• a partner with cold sores should not perform oral sex on their pregnant partner, unless the pregnant partner is known to already have HSV-1 infection.
• a partner with genital herpes should consider using suppressive antiviral therapy, condoms or dams and a good lubricant throughout their partners pregnancy.
• pregnant people with recurrent herpes may choose to take suppressive therapy during the final few weeks of pregnancy, to prevent recurrences and therefore avoid a caesarean delivery. This has been shown to be both safe and effective.

Treatment If The Blisters Come Back

Go to a GP or sexual health clinic if you have been diagnosed with genital herpes and need treatment for an outbreak.

Antiviral medicine may help shorten an outbreak by 1 or 2 days if you start taking it as soon as symptoms appear.

But outbreaks usually settle by themselves, so you may not need treatment.

Recurrent outbreaks are usually milder than the first episode of genital herpes.

Over time, outbreaks tend to happen less often and be less severe. Some people never have outbreaks.

Some people who have more than 6 outbreaks in a year may benefit from taking antiviral medicine for 6 to 12 months.

If you still have outbreaks of genital herpes during this time, you may be referred to a specialist.

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Best Subscription For Herpes Test: Letsgetchecked

The LetsGetChecked home kits can test for both HSV-1 and HSV-2. This test kit may be best for people who require regular testing as the companys subscription options can offer significant discounts.

A person receives a collection kit with all the tools they need to collect their samples at home. This includes needles, a prepaid envelope, alcohol swabs, and a tube. The tests come in discreet packaging so that other people will not know what the person has received.

The person also has access to an instruction video on the company website that explains how they should take their test. LetsGetChecked suggests that people take a blood sample before 9 a.m. and return it to the laboratory on the same day.

The company states that it issues the results within 25 days.

Individuals who receive a positive result can contact a nurse through the company, and they may suggest a treatment plan.

LetsGetChecked offers a one-time purchase for $119. Anyone who requires regular testing can purchase a LetsGetChecked subscription and get discounts on its tests. For instance, a 3-monthly subscription will give a person a 30% saving on the cost of the kits.

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How Soon Can You Get Tested For Stds

If you have potentially been exposed to an STD, you may think that getting tested immediately is imperative. But in fact, getting tested too early may lead to inaccurate results. It takes time for your body to recognize and respond to the STD once you are exposed to it. If you get tested before your body has responded to the STD, it will be too early for the test to detect the STD in your system. How long does it take to get an STD? When should you get tested? Heres what you need to know:

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How To Get Tested For Herpes

Since most people with genital herpes have few, infrequent or even NO noticeable symptoms most of the time, herpes diagnosis can be almost impossible to do without a herpes blood test or PCR test. However, many doctors are very out-of-date about herpes tests. On this page, well tell you exactly how to get tested for herpes, and which tests are most accurate or least accurate.

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Genital Herpes Is Common Shouldnt Cdc Recommend Testing For Everyone

CDC recommends herpes testing for people who have genital symptoms to confirm if they have it. Testing allows a healthcare provider to talk with patients about what to expect in the future. This includes talking about medications that help with symptoms. Providers can also tell patients how to lower the risk of transmitting herpes to sex partner.

CDC does not recommend herpes testing for people without symptoms in most situations. This is because of the limits of a herpes blood test and the possibility of a wrong test result. The chances of wrong test results are higher for people who are at low risk of infection.

Blood tests might be useful if:

• You have genital symptoms that could be related to herpes, or
• You have a sex partner with genital herpes, or
• Your provider found signs of herpes, but you still need a test to confirm it.

If you are sexually active, talk openly and honestly with your healthcare provider about what tests are right for you. These tips can help.

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Is A Blood Test For Genital Herpes Included When I Ask To Be Tested For Everything Why Does Cdc Recommend Testing For Other Stds But Not Herpes

Herpes blood tests may or may not be included. Your doctor chooses STD tests based on your sexual behaviors , as well as how common the infection is in the area that you live in. This is why you should have an open and honest discussion with your doctor about your sex practices and history. When you go in for STD testing, it is important to ask your doctor which infections you are and are not being tested for, and why.

STD tests are usually done for infections that have serious outcomes if they are not treated. For example, finding and treating curable STDs like chlamydia can stop them from causing serious complications like infertility in women. Genital herpes does not usually result in serious outcomes in healthy, non-pregnant adults. More often, the stigma and shame from a genital herpes infection can be more troubling to someone who is infected than the disease itself. If you are worried about genital herpes, you should talk with your doctor about whether you should be tested.

How Do I Get It

Genital herpes is passed from one person to another during sex. Anyone whos sexually active can get the virus and pass it on. Herpes simplex is most likely to be passed on just before, during or straight after an outbreak.Genital herpes can be passed on:

• if you receive oral sex from someone who has a cold sore or is just about to get one

If youre pregnant its possible to pass the virus to the baby if youre having your first outbreak at the time of giving birth.If you already have one type of herpes simplex virus its still possible for you to get the other type although you may not notice symptoms.You cant get genital herpes from hugging, sharing baths or towels, from clothing, from swimming pools, toilet seats or from sharing cups, plates or cutlery.

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Best Sti Panel Test For Herpes: Everlywell

Everlywell offers STI test panels for males and females. This test may be most suitable for people who want to test for a wide range of STIs.

Once a person has purchased a test, they must register it on Everlywells website. They then need to post the collected samples with prepaid shipping.

Everlywell states that people can receive their test results within 57 of posting the samples. However, several customer reviews on the companys website say they had to wait up to 2 weeks.

The person receives digital and printable results. If they test positive for any STIs, they can connect with Everlywells network of independent physicians for advice and treatment.

This test costs $149. However, people can subscribe for twice-yearly tests and save money per kit. They can also use their FSA or HSA to pay for this test.

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