DD gets 4 cold sores a month

[pinkyh]

Hi all,

My DD(5) seems to be really struggling with getting cold sores every month. She would heal from one then days later another one comes out. She caught the virus when she was 16 months old and since then they've been coming out once every 1-2 months but the last 6 months have been absolutely ridiculous.. gets them every week + impetigo to throw in. I feel so sorry for her. We do our best to treat with all sorts of cold sore creams / patches even prescribed fusidic acid for it. But nothing works. GP says there's nothing to do about it. But I honestly can't live like this. My heart breaks for her as she's such a gorgeous child and always with awful sores around her mouth.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated

DS had this problem (and at same age 4/5). Initially we had to log each cold sore with the gp, when they finally saw how many he was gwtting they did a consultation with a paeds dermatologist who recommended a mixture for him to have from when the cold sore began to tingle. I think we only used the medication a few times but it boosted things enough so that hw rarely gets them now.

Have you been prescribed acyclovir tablets? DD has suffered from cold sores for many years and at the first sign of one she takes five tablets a day.

Oh thank you for your reply. Will keep trying with the Gp hopefully she gets sent to paediatrics 🤞

I think antivirals would be what I expected to be prescribed.

No. I have asked but our GP is adamant that it happens and nothing to do about it. He says there's no cure 😭 I have a log of how many she gets and pictures to support my log. Might have to go the private route if it doesn't work 😔

Ask to see a different GP. I would expect antiviral tablets.

Also cold sores hurt, I get them occasionally, and I really feel for her getting them so often.

Can children that age take L-lysine?

23mg/kg apparently.

L-lysine changed my life re: cold sores. I used to get multiple really sore outbreak's when run down (which given I worked shifts was often), now I get 2 or 3 a year and always linked to stuff I know I shouldn’t do (eg. Drinking from a glass in a pub, letting my lips get dry or damaged, using an old lipstick or lip liner). It comes in supplement form (and you used to be able to get it as a balm)

Your poor DD. That was me as a child as well. Acyclovir tablets are the answer as posted above.

I suffered at a similar rate to your DD. There is barely a photo of me as a child wihtout one. As a teenager I never got to go to a party or a disco without a sore. Eventually in my 50s I got acyclovir tablets. I don't take them any more although I have some for emergencies but I hardly get them now. I assume the break I got with acyclovir helped my body cope with the virus.

I don't know how you'd get them for a child, I had to get them privately as my GP wouldn't prescribe them. They are miserable horrible things and she is entitled tohelp.

You need aclovir tablets and a different doctor. They are dissolvable.

Also lysine but the tablets are very big. Maybe lysine in powder form.

Thank you. Yes they do. She always cries when they come on as she says they hurt too much.

A few girls in her class have started to comment about her mouth too which doesn't help her situation

Thank you. I will have a look into this

Herpotherm Cold Sore Treatment Device – Long Lasting and Reusable Heat Pen https://amzn.eu/d/fzUmnly

Whilst you are sorting out the GP, never a quick process, you could try this, I have found it helpful but I know results vary.

Which aclovir did you take? 5 days or long term?

This! And the cream

How come she can’t use the topical (put on skin) Zovirax cream which is available from the pharmacy OTC? That would be first line and then the prescription tablets if the cream having no effect. Not a medic so I don’t know age limitations ; but I do know my sister started this regime as a teenager and it was life changing. Your poor dd. Have you tried discussing with a good pharmacist? (Not the assistant, but the pharmacist). And also try another GP who takes this seriously.

Additionally …
Why not try her on a zinc supplement all year round. I read about it somewhere so I take it all the time. It supports the immune system. Ask your pharmacist about dosage for a child.

No more cold sores for me.

Dd got these at a similar age- probably
peaked age 3/4… she was prescribed liquid aciclovir to be taken as soon as the first tingle/spot appeared. She had up to 15-20 at once one time- literally like stars at night… iirc she got a blood test but nothing untoward was happening and she has outgrown them. Gets 2/3 a year now and they’re single
ones… she is 14

https://cks.nice.org.uk/topics/herpes-simplex-oral/prescribing-information/oral-antiviral-drugs/

What is your health authority look up their protocols too. Insist on some oral acyclovir.

She takes 200mg tablets but only when she has a coldsore. She will take one a day when on a sunny holiday as a preventative measure too.

When she was 5 and first saw GP she was put on a course of a aclovir in order to break the cycle of them.

As someone mentioned ointment, if I ever get the tingling feel of a cold sore I immediately apply aciclovir and it stops the cold sore developing. If I don't apply it immediately, the cold sore develops. I buy mine from poundland , virasorb, now rather than the branded one which is the same but much dearer. I would phone a pharmacy and ask if aciclovir 5% is safe for a five year old. Might be worth trying over the Christmas break, when you can supervise. I rarely get cold sores nowadays.

Just checked and it's safe over two year olds.

If it's not the same sort of scabby cold sore, my mum used to swear by marmite ( eating it!) for her cold sores.