Effective diagnosis and treatment of cold sore
Cold sores, sometimes commonly called as fever blisters are groups of small, painful fluid filled
blisters or sores that appear around the lips, in the mouth or on the nose. These are cause by the virus
known as herpes simplex which reside in the body in dormant stage and occur during fever, cold or
any skin allergy.
The treatment of cold sores depends up on the proper diagnosis of the cold sore. Knowing the
specific reason for the cold sore is most essential as they are caused by many factors such as
– Fever, colds, or the flu
– Ultraviolet radiation exposure to the skin
– Stress, a major contributing factor
– Changes in the immune system
– Hormonal changes such as menstruation
– Skin trauma
The diagnosis of the cold sores is usually based on the appearance of the blisters or the lesions on
the face, mouth or the lips. One need not require the laboratory test to diagnose the cold sore. The
canker sores can be misunderstood for cold sore, but usually the canker sores occur only inside the
mouth. There are many tests available to diagnose the cold sore like viral culture and polymerase chain
reaction test. Blood tests from antibodies may be somewhat useful. The symptoms of cold sore include
pain around your mouth and on your lips, a fever, a sore throat, or swollen glands in your neck or other
parts of the body. After the blisters appear, the cold sores usually break open, leak a clear fluid, and
then crust over and disappear after several days to 2 weeks. These might be very painful when they are
active and can case extreme irritation.
Some of the effective home cold sore treatment starts with taking proper precaution to avoid the same.
Prevention is the better cure for these kinds of cold sores. People with clod sores should wash their
hands often, especially after touching the face. Ensure not sharing the utensils and cups with other
people when infected. Some of the things that could give temporary relief are cold compress, eating
vitamin supplements and changes in diet.
There are several medications that can be adopted to reduce the duration, pain and symptoms of cold
sore. One can find these medications over the counter without prescriptions. These medications can
be in the form of creams or ointments and others are taken in the form of a pill or a tablet. Most of
the creams and ointments contain benzocaine (5%-20%), lidocaine (0.5%-4%), tetracaine (2%) or
dibucaine (0.25%-1%) will help relieve burning, itching, and pain. Examples are Inaction gel and
Zilactin. It is important to keep in mind that these topical agents have a short duration of action,
usually only lasting 20-30 minutes.
The pills that can help heal the cold sore completely and avoid the reoccurrence are acyclovir
(Zovirax), valacyclovir (Valtrex), and Famciclovir (Famvir). These oral medications have been
shown to decrease the duration of the outbreak. The medications are generally well tolerated with few
side effects. Headache, nausea, and diarrhea may occur in some people. It is to be understood that
prevention and taking proper steps of precaution is the best cure to cold sore. Ensure taking proper care
of the body to avoid reoccurrence of these cold sores.
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