The word “herpes” means different things to different people. To some, herpes is the name given to the troubling blisters or sores that can periodically appear on or around the lips. To others, herpes is a feared sexually transmitted disease that can be caught once but which has a painful aftermath that can be reexperienced many times.
The term “herpes” can be appropriately applied to both these common afflictions, but, in addition, medical personnel recognize herpes of the mouth (herpes gingivostomatitis), herpes of the throat (herpes pharyngitis), herpes of the eye (herpes keratitis), herpes of the brain (herpes encephalitis), and herpes of the newborn infant (neonatal herpes).
These illnesses are related because they are all caused by the same two closely related viruses, herpes simplex
virus type 1 and herpes simplex virus type 2. Viruses, including herpes simplex virus type 1 and type 2, are a major cause of suffering for all living creatures.
Both herpes simplex virus type 1 and type 2 can cause several very different illnesses, including eye infection, fever blisters/cold sores, and genital herpes. At one time, physicians thought that herpes simplex virus type 1 caused infection only above the waist, infecting the lips, eyes and so on, while the type 2 virus infected only below the waist, causing genital herpes.
It is now recognized that both types of virus are equally capable of causing infection above or below the waist and that either virus can cause any of the different forms of herpes. The important determinant of first episode disease is not the virus type but rather the anatomic location where the virus enters the body, the so-called portal of entry. For eye infections, the virus must come into contact with the eye; for infections of the lips, mouth and throat, the virus enters through the mouth; and for genital herpes, the infection begins when the virus comes into contact with genital or anal mucous membranes.
It is now recognized that both types of virus are equally capable of causing infection above or below the waist and that either virus can cause any of the different forms of herpes. The important determinant of first episode disease is not the virus type but rather the anatomic location where the virus enters the body, the so-called portal of entry. For eye infections, the virus must come into contact with the eye; for infections of the lips, mouth and throat, the virus enters through the mouth; and for genital herpes, the infection begins when the virus comes into contact with genital or anal mucous membranes.