Having A Cold Sore In Your Eye
| Having A Cold Sore In Your Eye | |
| Date: September 17, 2006 | |
Ocular Herpes Simplex Herpes simplex virus is a common virus affecting humans. It is perhaps best known as the cause of cold sores, the facial blisters that sometimes occur following a cold or fever. The name herpes comes from the Greek word meaning "to creep", as cold sores sometimes appear to creep or spread over the face. There are two types of herpes simplex viruses. Type 1 primarily involves the face and eyes, and type 2 primarily causes genital infections. Each year in the United States approximately 25 million people have flare-ups of facial herpes, five million develop genital herpes and 700,000 develop ocular herpes simplex. Eye Involvement and Symptoms When the eye is infected by herpes simplex, it usually affects only one eye and most often occurs on the cornea (the normally clear dome that covers the front part of the eye). This type of corneal infection is called Herpes Keratitis. The infection may be superficial, involving the top layer (epithelium) of the cornea, and usually heals without scarring, or it may involve the deeper layers of the cornea. If the infection involves the deeper layers, it may lead to scars of the cornea, loss of vision, and sometimes even blindness. Symptoms of herpetic eye disease may include blurred vision, sensitivity to light, pain and/or redness of the eye. Causes Who gets herpes in the eye? Most people have been exposed to herpes simplex virus without being aware of it, usually sometime in early childhood. In most people, the virus settles in the nerves going to the face. Usually the virus remains dormant from then on and does not cause any clinical disease. In some people, however, the virus can be reactivated and spread down the nerves to the face or to an eye. The reasons for this reactivation and reinfection are not completely understood. The factor that determines eye involvement or only skin or lip involvement is unknown. The virus may become reactivated during emotional or physical stress, overexposure to ultraviolet light (i.e. tanning) and/or in conditions of immune -compromise (i.e. chronic diseases such as cancer or AIDS). After the first episode of corneal infection, approximately one in four patients will have a recurrence in the next two years. After the second eye infection, the odds of further recurrences greatly increase. Ocular herpes simplex is one of the most frequent causes of corneal blindness in the United States and a leading indication for corneal transplantation. Treatment The treatment of herpes infection of the eye depends on the location and the severity of involvement. Patients whose corneal infections are only superficial need to apply eyedrops or ophthalmic ointments that are antiviral - they attack viruses. Treatment may vary for deeper, more severe corneal infection and for herpetic inflammation within the eye. Steroids, in the form of drops, may help decrease inflammation and corneal scarring however, timing and quantity of the steroid drops should be closely monitored to avoid promoting the viral infection. Oral antiviral agents are also recommended. Oral antivirals can also play a later role in avoiding recurrent ocular herpes simplex if taken in small daily doses for up to one year after the initial corneal infection. Please contact our office with questions concerning this condition or its treatment. We can be reached in Stillwater at 405-372-1715 or in Pawnee at 918-762-2573. |
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