How are genital herpes and HIV linked?

How are they linked?

Herpes simplex can cause severe disease in immunocompromised patients. More recently it’s become evident that having genital herpes increases your risk of acquiring HIV and probably increases your risk of transmitting HIV.

It increases your risk of acquiring HIV because it causes genital ulcers that provide an easier entry for HIV. In addition, the kind of cells that come to the herpes lesion to help repair the damage are CD4 cells and those are the cells that serve as entry cells for HIV to the body.

In terms of transmission, people who have HIV and HSV-2 appear to have HIV present in the genital ulcers that are caused by herpes. They’re shedding more HIV and therefore they’re more infectious.

What kind of treatment is available?

There are three antiviral medications for herpes that are currently FDA approved. These drugs are equally effective and can either be used during outbreaks or suppressively, meaning they can be taken every day to prevent recurrences. One of the drugs is available as a topical cream, but it’s not very effective and experts discourage its use.

XLPharmacy Canada and Valtrex-Herpes.com