Effective Cold Sore Treatment: Antiviral Options & Relief

Cold sores are caused by the herpes simplex-1 virus and are painful and unattractive. Your doctor can prescribe anti-viral treatments for your cold sores to lessen the amount of time they are present.

Oral Treatments

• Although originally intended to treat genital herpes, many doctors will prescribe oral anti-viral medications to treat cold sores. These include famciclovir, valacyclovir and acyclovir.

Topical Treatments

• There are two topical anti-virals you can apply directly to cold sores, acyclovir and penciclovir.

Benefits

• Anti-viral medications work to decrease and suppress virus activity, which means outbreaks will clear faster or even be prevented.

Time Frame

• Start anti-viral medications as early as possible when an outbreak occurs in order for them to be effective.

Warning

• Some topical balms and ointments marketed to treat cold sores are not anti-viral; you will need to get a prescription from a doctor for anti-viral medication for cold sores.