Genital herpes is a sexually transmitted disease, or STD. It is spread from person to person during vaginal, anal, or oral sexual contact. Genital herpes is one of the most common STDs in the United States. Once a person gets genital herpes, the virus remains in the patient's body for life. There is no cure for genital herpes, but there are anti-viral medications that can lesson the discomfort of a herpes outbreak, and may reduce the likelihood of transmitting the virus to others.
Five medications are available from Mens-Prescriptions.com for the treatment of Herpes: Aldara Cream, Condylox, Acyclovir, Valtrex, and Famvir. Patients are encouraged to discuss treatment options with their physician.
Especially during a herpes outbreak, the infected person sheds the herpes virus and can infect their partner. There is some evidence that the use of anti-viral medications reduce viral shedding and can help decrease the transmission of the disease to sexual partners. While not yet conclusively determined, people with HSV should consider being on medication if they are sexually active.