Hello, I am a male, 26, and was recently diagnosed with genital HSV 2. I also tested positive for HSV 1,and do not had any issues with cold sores, but did have a shingles outbreak 3 years ago. I have been reading up on the virus and have a few open questions, which if could be answered, would be greatly appreciated.
1. I have read that it is very uncommon for genital HSV 2 to be passed on through oral sex. Could you please provide insight on how uncommon the transmission actually is? Is there a %?
2. I am currently on a daily dose of 400mg Acyclovir, which I take 2 pills a day. My initial and reoccurring outbreaks were not severe and I only had a couple minor blisters on the shaft of my penis. My main concern with the virus is passing it along to a partner, therefore my plan is to continue taking the suppressive dose, to always wear a condom, and of course, to not have sex when I have an outbreak. Could you please provide some insight on how effective my approach should be? If I follow the aforementioned actions, what is the % chance that I will pass the virus on?
3. As an expert on the virus, what is your personal opinion on notifying a partner before sexual intercourse? I believe that the precautions that I am taking should be very effective in preventing any transmission and therefore the chance is so minimal that bringing the topic up is essentially a non issue. From my research, it appears that HSV2 has more a psychological effect on a person, than a physical. Is this a reasonable assumption?
4. In my research, I read multiple times how condoms do not provide 100% protection against the transmission of the virus, due to a condom only covering the penis. If my blisters only occur on the shaft of my penis, does that mean that the virus only sheds in that region as well and therefore a condom would be 99.9% effective?
Many thanks for your help!