Sexual Health
Genital herpes is a sexually transmitted disease, or
STD. It is spread from person to person during vaginal,
anal, or oral sexual contact. Genital herpes is one of
the most common STDs in the United States. Once a person
gets genital herpes, the virus remains in the patient's
body for life. There is no cure for genital herpes, but
there are anti-viral medications that can lesson the discomfort
of a herpes outbreak, and may reduce the likelihood of
transmitting the virus to others.
Five medications are available from DesktopMD for the
treatment of Herpes: Aldara Cream, Condylox, Acyclovir,
Valtrex, and Famvir. Patients are enctheiraged to discuss
treatment options with their physician.
Especially during a herpes outbreak, the infected person
sheds the herpes virus and can infect their partner. There
is some evidence that the use of anti-viral medications
reduce viral shedding and can help decrease the transmission
of the disease to sexual partners. While not yet conclusively
determined, people with HSV should consider being on medication
if they are sexually active.
