*Sobs*
Anyone knows what a Cold Sore is?
Cold sores are small, painful, fluid-filled blisters or sores that appear on the lips, mouth or nose that are caused by a virus. The sores can be painful and usually last a few days. Unlike most viral infections, the cold sore virus is not completely eliminated by the body defenses. For this reason, cold sores often recur.
Mine's at the lips. At first I thought it was ulcer again last night, but I was wrong.
Went to see doctor in the noon and he told me that this Cold Sore is caused by Stress.
This is what I found from the net.
The virus that causes cold sores is known as the herpes simplex virus (HSV). There are two types of HSV, type I and type II. Cold sores are usually caused by type I. Herpes simplex infections are contagious. The virus is spread from person to person by kissing or other close contact with sores or even from contact with apparently normal skin that is shedding the virus. Infected saliva is also a means of transmitting the virus. People are most contagious when they have active blister-like sores. Once the blisters have dried and crusted over (within a few days), the risk of contagion is significantly lessened. However, a person infected with HSV can pass it on to another person even when a cold sore is not present. This is because the virus is sometimes shed in saliva even when sores are not present. Despite popular myth, it is almost impossible to catch herpes (cold sores) from contaminated surfaces, towels, or washcloths.
After the first infection, the virus enters the nerve cells and travels up the nerve until it comes to a place called a
ganglion. There, it lays quietly in a
stage that is called a "dormant" or "
latent" period. At times, the virus can start multiplying again and travel down the nerve to the skin, causing new cold sores. The exact way this happens is not clear, but it is known that some conditions seem to be associated with recurrences, including:
-
fever,
colds, or the
flu (this is why some people call them "fever blisters"),
-
ultraviolet radiation (exposure to the sun),
-
stress,
- changes in the
immune system,
- hormonal changes, such as
menstruation, and
trauma to the skin.
Sometimes there is no apparent cause of the
recurrence.Colds sores have a tendency to recur in more or less the same place. Such recurrences may happen often (for example, once a month) or only occasionally (for example, once or twice a year).
Hmm.. no idea if this is serious but I did had this before few years back and it took quite long for the sore to heal. Last time, my mum just gave me some medication from the Chinese Physician to apply. Now, the doctor gave me some cream to apply. Hope will heal fast fast! =(
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