fruity Posted August 3, 2008 Report Share Posted August 3, 2008 Hi I know this sounds pretty weird. But I woke up one morning with a red mark on the side of my calf, about 2cm wide x 6cm long. I thought I must have walked into something without realising it. After a couple days it starts to turn whitish, and there is red inflamation around the wound. I decided to see the doctor who took one look at it and said I had herpes, gave me some zovirax and ant-viral medications. I've never had any outbreaks on my mouth or genitals that I'm aware of. I do sleep around with a couple girls each week, always wear a condom, never kiss them, finger them, go down on them or anything along those lines, and haven't done anything sexual with anyone using my calf, nor had any cuts or wounds on my calf. I thought herpes was an STD affecting the mouth and genitals? The only thing I can think of was the day before the symptoms appeared I had a foot massage, the girl was scratching me a bit with her long nails, and was using some cream on my feet/legs which burned a bit. Could she have transmitted it to me? I am really confused with how I got it. A) Did I get it from a hooker? Did I get it from a foot massage? C) Did the Dr. make the wrong diagnosis? Your thoughts would be appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.. Posted August 3, 2008 Report Share Posted August 3, 2008 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shingles Cheers, SD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fruity Posted August 3, 2008 Author Report Share Posted August 3, 2008 I actually read that page last night but discarded it as being irrelevant to me, although now I think it may well be relevant after all. Although I don't have fever, it's not painful, and the vast majority of sufferers are 50+, but I'm only 30. So it is herpes, but not the normal HSV-1 / HSV-2, and can appear randomly by anyone who has had chickenpox. How random... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cavanami Posted August 3, 2008 Report Share Posted August 3, 2008 Very, very random, from what I have seen. Can be triggered by diet (spicy foods?), sunlight, etc. It is a virus, so the antibiotics cannot kill it off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The_Munchmaster Posted August 3, 2008 Report Share Posted August 3, 2008 I had shingles in my early 20's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MooNoi Posted August 3, 2008 Report Share Posted August 3, 2008 You have to have chicken pox as a kid to get shingles as an adult. You don't "catch" herpes zoster from someone. Anything can trigger it - stress, being run-down, poor diet... just the virus which lays dormant in your body deciding to make an appearance. As long as you get it early with Zovirax tabs, it'll nail it pretty well and supress it again. Usually, you can tell you're about to have an outbreak as the skin in the area is very sensitive and tingly. Also, the virus targets a specific part of the body... eg. If you divide your face up into 4 "quadrants" it will only attack one of these areas. Like Munchie, I had it a while back on my face. It looks ugly, but I got an early diagnosis and the Zovirax kicked in and subdued it within 48 hours. If you are in Thailand, also go the pharmacy and get some amitriptamine (spelling not correct I think) 10mg tablets - this will help with any pain or itching you might be feeling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fruity Posted August 3, 2008 Author Report Share Posted August 3, 2008 Thanks heaps for the replies. I was really wondering for a while there as to how it got transmitted to my leg, based on what the Dr told me! I am on valtrex 500mg 3x day, + zovirax cream. I left it about 4 days so probably won't be as effective as it could. Anyway, Cheers all, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flashermac Posted August 3, 2008 Report Share Posted August 3, 2008 I got it across my forehead once about 20 years ago. I'd been out in the hot sun for hours on a really beastly day, which apparently brought it out. It's not a lot of fun. My left eye was swollen shut, I had large blisters across my forehead and scalp and I was hit with really bad vertigo. Took a few days to start feeling like I wasn't going to die. I had a colleague in 1986 who got it from stress. She was a brand new editor and had half a dozen magazines dumped on her by our considerate boss. She got it on her thigh and butt ... put her into hospital. Stress seems to be the main cause. Add the tropical heat to that and it's a wonder more folks don't come down with it here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fruity Posted August 6, 2008 Author Report Share Posted August 6, 2008 That sounds extremely nasty, I heard blindness and permanent nerve damage can be caused if you suffer from it badly in certain places. I feel lucky now it's only my leg, don't need to cover it, no clothing to rub on it, and not obviously seen; probably the best place to have it! It's not a lot of fun. My left eye was swollen shut, I had large blisters across my forehead and scalp and I was hit with really bad vertigo. Took a few days to start feeling like I wasn't going to die. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CTO Posted August 6, 2008 Report Share Posted August 6, 2008 I had shingles before Zavirox was available. Went from behind to inside my ear - fark it was painful/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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