What are the common symptoms of genital herpes? How long does genital herpes recur and infect

Firstly, patients with initial infections can be divided into primary and non primary infections.

（1） The patient with primary infection has no previous history of herpes simplex and no serum HSV antibodies. After infection with HSV, the clinical manifestations are the most severe. Patients develop symptoms after sexual contact with active herpes simplex injury patients. The incubation period is 3-14 days, with an average of about 6 days. Men are prone to developing symptoms in the glans, coronal sulcus, foreskin, and penis; Women are prone to developing symptoms in the vulva, cervix, anus, and buttocks. Most millet papules and blisters can fuse into patches. After 2-4 days, the ulcer becomes erosive or ulcerative, with conscious itching and pain. When the injury invades the urethral epithelium, the patient experiences urinary pain, difficulty urinating, and mucus secretion from the urethral opening. When invading the cervical epithelium, cervical erosion, ulcers, and vaginal discharge increase. Inguinal lymph nodes are swollen and tender, but there is no suppurative or ulcerative condition. New skin rashes occasionally appear within one week after onset, reaching their peak in 7-10 days, and then gradually subside and form scabs. Generally speaking, skin lesions take 18-21 days to completely subside and the epithelium grows normally. Some cases may experience viral blood symptoms such as fever, headache, nausea, photophobia, and even neck stiffness.

(2) Patients with non primary infections have a clinical manifestation of genital herpes for the first time, but have a history of lip herpes simplex in the past. There is HSV-1 antibody in the serum. Due to the protective effect of HSV-1 antibodies on the body, the clinical manifestations of non primary genital herpes are lighter than that of primary genital herpes, with limited skin damage and a mild course. Generally, the skin damage is completely scabbed and peeled off after about 2 weeks. The patient generally has no systemic symptoms and the inguinal lymph nodes are not swollen.

2、 Recurrent infection

The first recurrence often occurs six months to a year after the primary infection subsides. The average recurrence rate is 3-4 times per year, with more than 6 times indicating frequent recurrence. The causes of recurrence include decreased immune function, non immune factors and fatigue, mental stress, trauma, menstrual infections, etc. Generally speaking, recurrence is more common in males than in females, but the symptoms after recurrence in females are more severe than in males. The clinical manifestations and recurrence frequency vary from person to person.