Cold sores are manifested in the form of blisters around mouth. These are commonly known as fever blisters too. These pain a lot and ooze a typical sticky secretion which needs wiping off constantly. People suffering from cold sores find it difficult to socialize as these look ugly and are dreaded to get spread through contact. The later is, however, not true. It is non-contagious in nature.
Cause of cold sores
Cold sores are actually the result of viral infection. These sores can appear near the mouth or on genitals. Depending upon the part of the body that gets affected, the cold sores are caused by either of two types of herpes simplex viruses. One is HSV-1 that affects the genitals and the other one is HSV-2 that affects the mouth or near mouth region.
What drugs are available for curing cold sores?
Cold sores are treated most commonly with a drug called Valtrex. It is an antiviral caplet and is to be taken the day the cold sore appears. The drug is effective in checking the growth and spread of herpes virus and restricts the infection to the affected area only.
Dosage
This drug is available in its generic form – valacyclovir. The caplet may be found in 500mg and 1g forms. The doctor prescribes the strength depending upon the state and severity of infection. For all adults and kids above 12 years, 2g of this medicine is to be taken in one day. Thus, one 1g caplet each in day and in night is ideal way of consuming this drug for the faster treatment of Cold Sores.
Children below 11 years are not recommended this medicine for curing cold sore. But, it is if great use in solving cases of chicken pox in the children above two years.
This drug is tested to be more effective in curing cold sores. It was observed in one of the tests that cold sore subsided faster when this medicine was taken as compared with allowing it to heal on its own. So, if pain and itching becomes unbearable, this medicine can be used as immediate relief.
How to take cold sore drug
Medicine for cold sore is to be taken orally. Its intake should start as soon as the cold sore is spotted. The medicine can be taken twice a day. If the kid is not able to swallow the caplet, it can be made into liquid suspension. Some pharmacies do have liquid suspension made using this drug.
When the patient is on this medicine, water intake should increase. Like many drugs, this also takes toll on the kidney function. So, taking water flushes the medicine out while protecting the kidney from its adverse effects.
Some important side-effects
There can be common to serious but rare side-effects of this medicine. The user can experience stomach ache, nausea, dizziness, or rashes if they are sensitive to this drug. It should not be given to a patient of kidney ailment as it can worsen the condition.
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