HIV TREATMENT OF OPPORTUNISTIC INFECTIONS: HERPES SIMPLEX INFECTIONS
Approximately 70 percent of people who are infected with HIV also have genital herpes. This is a much higher rate than that in the rest of the population, where the average infection rate is about 25 percent. It is possible that people may have become infected with herpes through the same sexual risks that exposed them to HIV In addition, any disease that causes sores or lesions in the genital area puts a person at higher risk of acquiring HIV since any breaks in the skin, even if microscopic, can facilitate transmission. As with the rest of the population, people with HIV infection may not know they have herpes, because they can be symptom free or only mildly symptomatic and not recognize these symptoms as being from herpes. In general, people with HIV infection and herpes have more frequent and severe herpes outbreaks than those without HIV The antiviral medications can be used to treat outbreaks when they occur or be taken every day to prevent an outbreak (see the section on herpes). The use of suppressive acyclovir may also prevent the reactivation of the chicken pox virus (in those infected as children) as herpes zoster, or shingles. Those with AIDS who are on suppressive acyclovir also seem to have more prolonged survival times than those who are not, although the reasons for this finding are unclear.
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