Introduction
The scenario is all too familiar: You feel a tingling on your lip and a small, hard spot that you can't yet see. Sure enough, in a day or two, red blisters appear on your lip. It's another cold sore, probably happening at a bad time, and there's no way to hide it or make it go away quickly.
Cold sores also called fever blisters are quite different from canker sores, a condition people sometimes associate them with. Cold sores are caused by the herpes simplex virus, and they're contagious. Canker sores, which aren't contagious, are ulcers that occur in the soft tissues inside your mouth, places where cold sores don't occur.
Cold sores are common. Though you can't cure or prevent cold sores, you can take steps to reduce their frequency and to limit the duration of an occurrence.
Treatment
Cold sores generally clear up without treatment in seven to 10 days. If you experience frequent bouts, your doctor may prescribe an antiviral medication to treat cold sores. Using a medication may shorten the duration of cold sores and decrease your pain.
Complications
Cold sores are contagious. They can pass from one person to another through skin-to-skin contact. The greatest risk of infection is from the time the blisters appear until they have completely dried and crusted over. There is a possibility of spreading the virus for some time even after the skin has healed.
If you have a cold sore, avoid close contact with infants, anyone who has eczema (atopic dermatitis) or people with a suppressed immune system, such as people with cancer, AIDS or an organ transplant. These people are at higher risk of more severe infection.
Herpes simplex infection of the eye causes scarring of the cornea and is a leading cause of blindness in the United States.
