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Cold Sores

Cold Sores Overview

Cold sores are small, painful, fluid-filled blisters or sores that appear on the lips, mouth, or nose that are caused by a virus. The sores can be painful and usually last a few days. Unlike most viral infections, the cold sore virus is not completely eliminated by the body defenses. For this reason, cold sores often recur.



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Herpes Simplex Infections (Cold Sores, Non-Genital) - Describe Your Experience

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Please describe your experience with herpes simplex infections (cold sores, non-genital).

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Cold Sores

Stress Overview

Everyone is familiar with stress. We experience it in varying forms and degrees every day. In small doses, stress can actually be beneficial to us. It is only when the stress becomes too great, affecting our physical or mental functioning, that it becomes a problem.

  • In small doses, stressors can help give us increased energy and alertness, even helping to keep us focused on the problem at hand. This type of stress is good. People may refer to the experience of this type of stress as feeling "pumped" or "wired."
  • As the level of pressure gets too great, stress eventually surpasses our ability to cope with it in a positive way. Often, people describe themselves as being stressed out, burned out, or at wits end. At this point, it is important to find positive and productive ways to deal with the stress and, more importantly, to address the person or situation that is causing the stress.
  • Everyone reacts to stress diffe...

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Read What Your Physician is Reading on eMedicine

Herpes Simplex »

Herpes simplex viruses (HSVs) are DNA viruses that cause acute skin infections and present as grouped vesicles on an erythematous base.

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