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Dormant Herpes Virus

Herpes is an infection of any form of herpes simplex virus. The herpes viruses are ancient living forms infecting most species of animals. Two of the herpes virus forms infect humans: Herpes simplex type 1 (HSV-1), which causes cold sores and fever blisters; and herpes simplex type 2 (HSV-2), which causes genital herpes.

  1. Statistics

    • Eighty to 90 percent of humans have HSV-1, and HSV-2 infects up to 25 percent of the population. Because the herpes viruses may remain dormant, as many as 75 percent of those carrying HSV-2 (genital herpes) do not know they are infected. Sixty percent of HSV-2 carriers show no symptoms.

    Infection

    • Typically, the immune system assaults the virus and suppresses the symptoms, but cannot eradicate the herpes. The virus lays dormant in nerve root cells and evades further immune system attack by traveling the nerve pathways from root to root in its inactive state, during which it causes no symptoms.

    Latency or Dormancy

    • According to Herpes Guide, within 24 hours of infection the nucleocapsid (naked virus) injects its DNA into the nucleus of a nerve cell and remains there in its latent form. The virus may not yet replicate, or only replicate at a low level. The virus remains dormant for the person's life, but periodically a trigger causes the virus to reactivate.

    Reactivation

    • When a trigger reactivates HSV, the virus reproduces and large numbers travel the nerve pathways, reaching the primary infection site in mucous membranes or the skin. Sometimes visible symptoms appear and sometimes not, but during this active time the infection is highly transmittable. This cycle of latency and reactivation may repeat hundreds of times over an infected person's life.

    Triggers and Warnings

    • Although medical science has not identified all triggers, some known ones are prolonged exposure to ultraviolet light (sunburn) for HSV-1, and friction or injury to the genitals for HSV-2. In either type, stress or anxiety, illness, excessive alcohol consumption, fatigue, surgical trauma or anything that lowers the immune system may trigger a recurrence.

      Many people experience warning signs (prodromes) indicating a reactivation of the virus. Some warning signs include itching, burning, tingling, numbness, fever or flu-like symptoms, swollen lymph nodes, and for type 2, painful urination, or pain in the backs of legs, lower back or buttocks.

    Recurrence

    • Although the cycle patterns vary from person to person, 50 percent of those infected with HSV-1 will have at least one symptomatic recurrence. The number is 80 percent for those with HSV-2 genital herpes, averaging about four per year with intermittent occurrences of non-symptomatic viral shedding (also contagious).

    Asymptomatic Transmission

    • Often herpes simplex infections are spread by those unaware they or infected, or between obvious outbreaks because their symptoms are mild or undetectable. When small amounts of the virus shed at or near the place of first infection, asymptomatic transmission (with no symptoms) may occur. While known to happen at least 18 to 20 days each year, accurate anticipation of times of asymptomatic transmission is not possible.

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