Cold sores complications
Cold sores are usually mild, but may cause complications in rare cases. People with weak immune systems caused by illness or treatments such as chemotherapy are particularly at risk of complications. Dehydration sometimes occurs if drinking fluids becomes painful. Young children are particularly at risk of becoming dehydrated. The herpes simplex virus can also spread to other parts of your body. Examples of when this can occur include: skin infections – these often occur if the virus comes into contact with broken skin, such as a cut or graze, or a skin condition such as eczema herpetic whitlow (whitlow finger) – this causes painful sores and blisters to appear on and around your fingers herpetic keratoconjunctivitis – this causes swelling and irritation (inflammation) of your eye area and sores to develop on your eyelids Left untreated, herpetic keratoconjunctivitis can cause the cornea, the transparent layer at the front of your eye, to become infected, which can eventually lead to blindness. It's therefore important not to touch your eyes if you have an unhealed cold sore. If you must touch your eyes – for example, to remove contact lenses – wash your hands thoroughly first. In very rare cases, encephalitis, a condition where the brain becomes inflamed and swollen, can be caused by the cold sore virus spreading to the brain. It can be treated with intravenous injections of antiviral medications, such as aciclovir.