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Avatar universal

Concerned, please help.

Hello everyone. I was recently diagnosed with Herpes 1 in my genital region.I have been with the same girl for many years and my doctor thinks that I could have received HSV 1 more than 7 years ago! I found that hard to believe but both myself and gf have been faithful to each other. Regardless, I have been handling this alot better than I thought but after reading about the virus online I have some new concerns. So if any of you could help I would be very appreciative.

My main concern after reading online about Herpes is Ocular Herpes. 2 weeks before I knew I had HSV 1 on my genitals, I thought the small bumps were pimples. However after they didn't go away I realized that I should go to the doctor and a few days later I found out that it was Herpes. So i'm concerned that I could have possibly touched my genitals and maybe touched my eyes. I'm thinking in the middle of the night I might have gone to the bathroom or scratched myself down there and then touched my eyes. The thought of this has freaked me out considering that Ocular Herpes could cause blindness. I'm sure some of you may at one point have had the same fear.

1) Is transmission likely to happen that way? Touching genitals with a small outbreak and then touching your eyes? And is it likely that I could ever get Ocular Herpes from my genital HSV1?

2) Should I go see an eye specialist and have him or her give me a test to see if everything is ok? (I must add I have no current problems with my eyes)

3) How often does Ocular Herpes cause blindness?

4) Do you think Herpes could have really been in my body quietly with no outbreaks for 7 years?


Thanks!
3 Responses
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284078 tn?1282616698
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Sorry for my delay and thanks to the other person for the advice.  Usually genital herpes does not affect the eye but it can in some cases so always be very careful to wash your hands a lot and don't get the virus near your eye.  Usually ocular herpes is due to the type of herpes you get from a fever blister or cold sore around the mouth or nose so be very wary of that.  Now if somehow you did get HSV in your eye, it can definitely be treated very effectively in many cases but can be a real long term hassle with recurrent episodes with some cases developing scarring and vision problems.  
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Avatar universal
Thank you so much for your response and taking the time to answer my questions.

I like websites like this but general info on the web can be terrfying. I was reading about this obstacle in my life and I was dealing with the fact that I had HSV1 better than I thought. Then i read about Ocular Herpes and it basically said that if you get it in your eye you are going to be blind....I freaked out. Haha.

So anyway, thanks for the help!

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Avatar universal
Hello. I have had a herpes simplex virus on my nose for many years now, so I know what your paranoia is spawning from, trust me. The term you are looking for is herpetic keratoconjunctivitis. Herpetic (the virus) + kerato (inflammation of the cornea) + conjuncti (inflammation of the conjunctiva, commonly known as pink eye).

1. If you touch a part of your body with a herpetic outbreak, you can spread it. Keep in mind, even if the locations of the outbreaks are different, the virus is almost always the same.

2. HSV-1 + 2 are difficult to test for when the outbreak is not present because the virus hides in the nerves when dormant.

3. Herpetic keratoconjunctivitis doesn't normally cause blindness. However, certain people may experience a condition in which the antibodies in your eye fights the antigens which causes a massive autoimmune response in the eye, which may result in the destruction of the corneal stroma and may lead to blindness, however this is relatively uncommon and only results in very persistent outbreaks.

4. Like I mentioned above, the virus can remain dormat in your nerves for a prolonged period of time (for me it was about a year), however I have never heard it remaining dormant for 7 years after exposure.

Relax, and take a deep breath. If you take care of yourself and make sure to limit exposure of the outbreaks, you'll be fine. Even if you do contract an ocular infection, which can be very easily prevented, the chances of even vision loss is minimal.
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