Toddler cold sores - any advice?

[Prematurelyaging]

My DS2 (almost 2y) has just got a large cold sore on his upper lip. I am putting aclovir cream on it, but as neither me nor DH nor DS1 has ever had a cold sore before, I have no idea how long they last, what's the best cream for them, if I can make it go away - and how I prevent them returning.

I know I have to be careful with towels and facecloths as cold sores are contagious - but other than that (and the advice that came with the cream!) I am pretty much in the dark.

Does any one have any tips or advice that they could share with me please?

Thank you!

Hello,
As you are probably aware, cold sores are caused by a herpes virus which, once infected, stays with you for the rest of your life. Basically, it sits dormant on nerves in the skin and becomes active when triggered. Common triggers include sunlight, illness and stress. When the lesions are visible, the virus is very contagious (hence the hygiene advice with the cream re towels, flannels etc) but otherwise it is not harmful to fit, healthy people. Those with active sores should NEVER be allowed contact with newborns as they do not have a good enough immune response to fight it off.
The rest of family may get a cold sore as a result of this but it is generally nothing to worry about. Aciclovir cream is pretty much the only treatment available over the counter.
Your little one should be encouraged not to touch or pick at his face and try to keep his hands away from other parts of his body - genitals in particular as this is the same virus that causes genital herpes (although a slightly different strain) so the two types are interchangeable. Thus they type you get on your face can be transferred to your bits and vice versa.
Your little one catching the initial infection is nothing to do with hygiene - it is just the luck of the draw.
Hope this helps!

Thanks very much for your advice (and sorry it's taken me a while to reply, haven't been on here for a few days). The cold sore is going down now, so hopefully in another day or two it will have disappeared...

Your poor DS, they're horrible things to get. Both DH and I have them and hate them.

If your DS has another attack, I'd recommend the compeed patches (if they're suitable for children, worth asking pharmacist) as they stick on and cover the sore up, keeping them out of reach of little fingers plus promoting faster healing. Might be easier than having to dollop on cream regularly.

I've also now been converted to the Boots electronic zapper that uses light to either stop the sores in their tracks or heal them much more quickly (they can knock around for a fortnight depensing on where they are on my face - mobility of that bit and so on) It's not cheap though, so only really worth buying if you get them fairly regularly.

Just checked out this thread again after a few days away from my pc - thanks so much for the advice, cakeywakey, I didn't know that you could get patches. I will check them out so I am prepared if DS gets another one.
His coldsore has gone now, but it did take the best part of a fortnight to clear up. Possibly because he kept licking it...!