Dr Steve
11-16-2008, 04:44 PM
Hello Dr. Steve,
Yo are the best, and thanks for all of the help with any questions I've ever posted.
Recently, I had a cold sore show up on my upper lip, right side. It was my first time ever having one, and it hurt like hell. I believe that it may have been right on top of one of my nerves, because now I have lost a lot of feeling in my upper lip and parts of my nose around the opening of the nostrils. Is this a common thing, being that the upper lip has such a high amount of nerves? How long could it take for the feeling to come back?
When I had my septoplasty a few years ago it took months. I expect the same.
Thanks in advanced.
Cold sores are caused by the Herpes Simplex Virus, usually HSV1 (the non-genital-herpes kind). This damnable virus hides in nerve cells, and since the immune system can't enter nerve cells, they can avoid detection and destruction for years. Every once in awhile, triggered by stress or trauma or according to some arcane timetable only the stupid viruses understand, they'll emerge from the nerve they're inhabiting and make it out to the skin to multiply...this causes the aforementioned "cold sore". Once in the skin, the immune system is free to kill the darned things, but not before they cause a scab and try to infect other people with their awful lifecycle (if it can be argued that viruses are even "alive"...that's another issue).
Since this was your first cold sore, it was likely a "primary" event, meaning that you were exposed to the virus recently and it invaded at the point of the cold sore. As it entered the nerve to make a home for itself, it irritated it, causing inflammation and the numbness you are experiencing. I'd expect the nerve to fully regenerate in a few weeks, and the next time the virus comes out to play, it probably won't cause any more nerve problems.
If you find you're having breakouts frequently, you'd benefit from anti-viral therapy with Valtrex or Famvir. They now have a one-time treatment with Valtrex...you take 2000mg the day you first feel the cold sore coming on and it just goes away. Some people have such frequent episodes that they just take Valtrex every day to suppress them. Talk to your health care provider about treating cold sores.
When you have a breakout, you're contagious, so be careful. Taking Valtrex decreases the amount of time you're contagious.
hope this helps!
your friend,
Steve
Yo are the best, and thanks for all of the help with any questions I've ever posted.
Recently, I had a cold sore show up on my upper lip, right side. It was my first time ever having one, and it hurt like hell. I believe that it may have been right on top of one of my nerves, because now I have lost a lot of feeling in my upper lip and parts of my nose around the opening of the nostrils. Is this a common thing, being that the upper lip has such a high amount of nerves? How long could it take for the feeling to come back?
When I had my septoplasty a few years ago it took months. I expect the same.
Thanks in advanced.
Cold sores are caused by the Herpes Simplex Virus, usually HSV1 (the non-genital-herpes kind). This damnable virus hides in nerve cells, and since the immune system can't enter nerve cells, they can avoid detection and destruction for years. Every once in awhile, triggered by stress or trauma or according to some arcane timetable only the stupid viruses understand, they'll emerge from the nerve they're inhabiting and make it out to the skin to multiply...this causes the aforementioned "cold sore". Once in the skin, the immune system is free to kill the darned things, but not before they cause a scab and try to infect other people with their awful lifecycle (if it can be argued that viruses are even "alive"...that's another issue).
Since this was your first cold sore, it was likely a "primary" event, meaning that you were exposed to the virus recently and it invaded at the point of the cold sore. As it entered the nerve to make a home for itself, it irritated it, causing inflammation and the numbness you are experiencing. I'd expect the nerve to fully regenerate in a few weeks, and the next time the virus comes out to play, it probably won't cause any more nerve problems.
If you find you're having breakouts frequently, you'd benefit from anti-viral therapy with Valtrex or Famvir. They now have a one-time treatment with Valtrex...you take 2000mg the day you first feel the cold sore coming on and it just goes away. Some people have such frequent episodes that they just take Valtrex every day to suppress them. Talk to your health care provider about treating cold sores.
When you have a breakout, you're contagious, so be careful. Taking Valtrex decreases the amount of time you're contagious.
hope this helps!
your friend,
Steve