Female Genital Herpes Symptoms – Unexpected Signs of Genital Herpes in Women
Nearly one in five people in North America carries one or more of the two kinds of herpesvirus that can cause genital herpes, but only 50 per cent of those who are infected know they have the disease.
That's why it is important for every sexually active woman to know about female genital herpes symptoms, especially the subtle symptoms that are easy to miss. Here are five things every woman needs to know about genital herpes symptoms.
- Both the "oral" herpesvirus and the "genital" herpesvirus can cause vaginal herpes symptoms.
- It is possible to catch herpes from a sexual partner who is not having any symptoms.
- In about half of all cases of female genital herpes, the only symptom is itch.
- When blisters are due to herpes, they usually occur in pairs.
- Later outbreaks usually follow warning signs.
Most of us are exposed to the HSV-1 herpesvirus by oral contact when we are infants or toddlers. Because this virus is most frequently passed from one child to another through contact with saliva, it was once referred to as "oral" herpes. The HSV-2 virus is usually contracted in adulthood through sexual contact, so it was once referred to as "genital" herpes.
Either kind of herpes, however, can cause more or less the same symptoms when it infected the genital organs. Women who have received oral sex from a partner who has any kind of herpes infection of the mouth, whether HSV-1 or HSV-2, can develop genital herpes symptoms.
In fact, it is possible to catch herpes from someone who has never had any symptoms at all. About half of all people who are infected with HSV-2 never have any kind of blistering or pain, but they can still shed the virus into body fluids.
Among people who have recurring outbreaks of herpes blisters, usually there are about 5 to 10 times as many days per year they can infect others as there are days they are experiencing symptoms. Even people who have no symptoms at all often have enough virus in their secretions to infect sex partners about 30 days of the year. With no symptoms, it is impossible to know which days the viral shedding occurs.
About 80 per cent of the population is exposed to HSV-1, the "oral" herpesvirus, at some time between birth and young adulthood. Developing antibodies to HSV-1 offers some protection against HSV-2, so some women who come down with genital herpes will not have any symptoms other than tingling, a mild fever, and maybe a mild headache (caused by a fearful sounding aseptic meningitis, which in this infection is almost never life-threatening).
Women who have less resistance to the herpesvirus develop more serious signs of genital herpes. There may be oozing lesions inside the cervix, and blisters on both sides of the vagina. Other signs of genital herpes include blisters that occur around the anus (especially after anal intercourse, but the virus can also migrate to the anus from the cervix), on the buttocks, on the thighs, and along the nerves in the legs that feed into the lower spine.Taking care to wipe urine upward rather than downward after going to the toilet can slow the spread of the disease.
After the initial infection, genital herpes "hides" in the nerves of the lower back. When the virus in these nerves is reactivated, it causes symptoms below the waist. Usually there is a prodrome of early warning signs including numbness, tingling, itching, heat, or mild pain in the areas that were affected by the first outbreak. Taking preventive medication at the first symptoms of an outbreak can stop blistering and pain.