Herpes Simplex 2 Research Paper
Herpes Simplex 1 and Simplex 2:
Episodic vs. Suppressive Antiviral Therapy
Abstract
Herpes is a global problem that is becoming more prevalent as adolescents are becoming sexually active. This paper will talk about how herpes simplex 1 is often treated by each occurrence which is known as episodic treatment and how herpes simplex 2 can be treated both by the occurrence (episodically) and long term which is known as suppressive therapy. Research is now being done to determine whether episodic or suppressive antiviral therapy is more effective in decreasing the spread of the herpes simplex 1 and 2 viruses. Three journal articles are used to analyze this information. Keywords: Episodic and Suppressive
Herpes …show more content…
Treating each occurrence is known as episodic treatment and this can be a very useful way to treat the common cold sore because most people will not adhere to an every day, for the rest of their life, oral medication for suppressive antiviral therapy. Over the counter creams such as Abriva, Zovirax, and Zilactin are available for people affected by cold sores and make treatment easy because you don’t need to go to a doctor for a prescription. However, this treatment is not always successful if the affected person does not adhere to the directions which include applying the cream five times a day, every four hours and this schedule would last for up to 10 days. There is a study that was performed to see if a high dose short duration oral medication would have better results for people affected by cold sores. During the study two groups of people, men and women that had been affected by chronic cold sores were given either a 1 day high dose of valacyclovir therapy at the first sign of a cold sore or a 2 day high dose of valacyclovir therapy. The results showed that both of these regimens had significant benefits over the long dose episodic cream therapy and that the 2 day therapy did not have better results than the 1 day high dose valacyclovir therapy. (Spotswood L. Spruance, 2002) Trials to show if long term …show more content…
While it does not cure the disease it does greatly reduce the number of outbreaks and therefore reduces the risk of new cases of herpes in others. Suppressive therapy of herpes simplex 2 with valacyclovir is also showing to improve the quality of life for patients with recurrent genital herpes. This was shown when a questionnaire called the “Recurrent Genital Herpes Quality of Life Questionnaire (RGHQoL)” was given to a group of people in an international, multicentre, randomized, double blind placebo controlled parallel group study. Each participant who was undergoing therapy either with antiviral medication or with a placebo was given the same 20 question survey each month for a year to evaluate the effects of the drugs on their quality of life. The overall data showed that those receiving the antiviral therapy had reduced feelings of depression and fear of
Episodic vs. Suppressive Antiviral Therapy
Abstract
Herpes is a global problem that is becoming more prevalent as adolescents are becoming sexually active. This paper will talk about how herpes simplex 1 is often treated by each occurrence which is known as episodic treatment and how herpes simplex 2 can be treated both by the occurrence (episodically) and long term which is known as suppressive therapy. Research is now being done to determine whether episodic or suppressive antiviral therapy is more effective in decreasing the spread of the herpes simplex 1 and 2 viruses. Three journal articles are used to analyze this information. Keywords: Episodic and Suppressive
Herpes …show more content…
Treating each occurrence is known as episodic treatment and this can be a very useful way to treat the common cold sore because most people will not adhere to an every day, for the rest of their life, oral medication for suppressive antiviral therapy. Over the counter creams such as Abriva, Zovirax, and Zilactin are available for people affected by cold sores and make treatment easy because you don’t need to go to a doctor for a prescription. However, this treatment is not always successful if the affected person does not adhere to the directions which include applying the cream five times a day, every four hours and this schedule would last for up to 10 days. There is a study that was performed to see if a high dose short duration oral medication would have better results for people affected by cold sores. During the study two groups of people, men and women that had been affected by chronic cold sores were given either a 1 day high dose of valacyclovir therapy at the first sign of a cold sore or a 2 day high dose of valacyclovir therapy. The results showed that both of these regimens had significant benefits over the long dose episodic cream therapy and that the 2 day therapy did not have better results than the 1 day high dose valacyclovir therapy. (Spotswood L. Spruance, 2002) Trials to show if long term …show more content…
While it does not cure the disease it does greatly reduce the number of outbreaks and therefore reduces the risk of new cases of herpes in others. Suppressive therapy of herpes simplex 2 with valacyclovir is also showing to improve the quality of life for patients with recurrent genital herpes. This was shown when a questionnaire called the “Recurrent Genital Herpes Quality of Life Questionnaire (RGHQoL)” was given to a group of people in an international, multicentre, randomized, double blind placebo controlled parallel group study. Each participant who was undergoing therapy either with antiviral medication or with a placebo was given the same 20 question survey each month for a year to evaluate the effects of the drugs on their quality of life. The overall data showed that those receiving the antiviral therapy had reduced feelings of depression and fear of