Once a woman has contracted genital herpes , the signs and symptoms are varied and often mistaken for other diseases or infections. This makes diagnosing genital herpes in women more difficult and, therefore, makes treatment more difficult.
Once a woman is infected with the herpes virus, she generally does not manifest symptoms for one to two weeks. Yet, during this period she is infectious and could pass the virus onto any sexual partners. After the initial dormant period, a woman's first sign of an outbreak is a tingling or itching sensation in the area where the blisters will soon appear.
Next, the area becomes red and swollen and the blisters will appear. They are usually located on the vaginal opening and the vulva; however, they can break out on the cervix, urethra, rectum, butt cheeks, and thighs. The blisters will break open and develop into ulcerated sores that are very painful. The open sores can last for up to three weeks. There are instances where a woman can experience a second set of blisters/sores during a single outbreak.
Besides being more likely to contract the virus, women also suffer more frequent, longer and more painful outbreaks than men. One reason the outbreaks are so much more devastating for women is that the blisters contain viral material that when released can cause inflammation and infection in any area of the body that is exposed. Since the female genital region is a larger surface area with delicate moist tissue, it is more susceptible to the infectious viral product released from the blisters.
Women can also develop other health issues due to a herpes outbreak. If a woman develops ruptured sores on the cervix, this can lead to cervicitis which is a condition caused by the inflammation of the cervix. In many cases, cervicitis is the only indication that a woman has contracted genital herpes.
A herpes outbreak with sores on the urethra can cause a woman to develop urethitis which is a painful inflammation of the urethra. An outbreak in this area can also cause a woman to experience painful urination and develop an infection of the urethra or urinary tract. Also, one in four women run the risk of developing meningitis which is a disease that causes the fluid around the brain to swell. This condition can be life threatening.
The signs and symptoms of genital herpes in women often mimic the signs and symptoms of other various female disorders. Because of this, it is very difficult to diagnose genital herpes in women. Women often don't recognize the symptoms as being caused by herpes and, therefore, don't seek medical diagnosis or treatment. Since a genital herpes outbreak can cause discharge and pain, women often mistake the outbreak for a yeast infection.
A genital herpes outbreak can also be mistaken for PID—pelvic inflammatory disease. Even doctors can originally misdiagnose a herpes outbreak for a urinary tract infection or bladder infection if the outbreak of sores are located on the urethra and causing pain and swelling in that area.
Vaginal discharge is a result of a genital herpes outbreak; however, vaginal discharge is also the result of many other female related disorders including yeast infections and pelvic inflammatory disease. However, the vaginal discharge from a genital herpes outbreak often differs slightly in that it is very liquid and has a very foul odor. Most other causes of vaginal discharge do not. Still, herpes is often confused with other, more common, conditions. For this reason, any time a woman has signs or symptoms of any condition involving her genital area she should have a thorough examination from a doctor and be tested for herpes simplex viruses types one and two if she is sexually active with multiple partners or a partner who has not been tested for the virus to ensure a proper diagnosis.
