Another Herpes Whitlow Story
Posted on Tuesday, April 28th, 2009 at 10:59 AMI am a 49 year old male. I developed herpetic whitlow of the proximal phalanges of the left middle finger. There was no complications with bacterial super infection.
I had slightly pricked the side of my middle finger with a staple and the wound seemed to be healed over. A day or two later my partner and I had sexual relations during which I used my fingers for stimulation of my partner. She had developed a primary case of HSV2 in the perineum some 18 years ago. She had no current signs and has not developed any. Her last outbreak was almost 10 years ago.
The staple wound seemed to resolve, leaving behind only a tiny area of cellulitis. About 6 days later, the wound developed a larger area of redness, and I cleaned it with soap and water, applied some antibiotic cream, and covered it with a band aid. The following day when I changed the bandaid the redness had spread distally in a narrow band.
By that evening the typical vesicles began to develop. I was aware of herpetic whitlow and recognized the signs. I applied Abreva and changed it and the bandaid three times a day. I did not apply it more often due to the fragility of the vesicles.
After two days the infection covered the area on the phalanx from knuckle to knuckle and approximately 1/3 of the diameter of the finger, but did not seem to spreading beyond this point. I continued to apply Abreva and clean the area three times per day, carefully cleaning my hands after each dressing change. I also wore a cotton glove between dressing changes.
By the fourth day, the lesion was red and taut, but no longer particularly painful. There was an area of open skin about 15mm x 4mm. Primary drainage had ceased. Applications of hydrogen peroxide did not show any significant super infection. However, the area covered by the lesion and cellulitis had not changed.
At that time I visited my primary care physician. He confirmed the diagnosis and prescribed topical acyclovir. He also pointed out that Abreva is useful only against HSV1 infections and this was almost certainly HSV2, therefore it would have been advisable to seek medical attention earlier. The area began to scab over about a week later, but remained red and taut for another week.
After about 3.5 weeks the scab had detached and the lesion was smooth, although still quite red for a radius about about double the size of the lesion proper. After 5 weeks the redness has faded considerably, though not completely. I continue to cover it with a bandaid and will probably continue to do so until the skin returns to a normal color. I intend to avoid contact with any mucous membrane or my genitalia for at least two to three weeks subsequent to complete visual resolution.
I experienced some malaise, fatigue, and nausea the day previous to emergence of the lesion, and for two days thereafter. The lesion was not extremely painful, probably due to the location on the proximal phalanx, instead of the common location at the distal phalanx, where it can irritate the pulp underlying the fingernail.
The primary difficulties of management were the regular and somewhat risky dressing changes, and the concern about when I could resume free use of the digit with near-zero risk.
I would recommend that anyone developing identifiable symptoms seek medical treatment immediately so as to acquire topical acyclovir as soon as possible.
I am also just recovering from a herpetic whitlow. During the initial phase, it felt like I had a bad hangnail, I had pain in my armpit that I figured was from throwing a football, and flu like malaise. I
By day 10 the pain in my finger got so bad that I checked myself into the emergency room, where they diagnosed me with whitlow and gave me acyclovir tablets to take for 10 days. I also kept bandages on it almost at all times.
It is my right index finger, my most useful finger…and it has still not gotten back to normal. I am very concerned about infecting my eyes, mouth, etc…
I’ve heard that it is very difficult to spread unless blisters are at the surface and oozing, but so far I’ve only experienced and outbreak on my finger….
fun right = )
How long have you had herpetic whitlow and what did the doctor say about the pain you are experiencing?
I”ve been scouring the internet trying to find what has happened to my finger. The pictures of Herpetic Whitlow look very similar to what my finger looks like. I don’t have a doctor, nor the money to see one. The pain hasn’t been unbearable, just itching and burning when the blisters get aggravated. The odd thing is though, The first lil bumps I got were over a month ago and did not resemble blisters; Only a couple weeks later (after they had spread in a nifty lil design) did these become apparent blisters; and there are still clusters of blisters popping up! shouldn’t it have stopped spreading by now? I would love to go to the doctor to get diagnosed, no money, and our local ER charges $100 if it’s not life threatening. Any feedback you can give me would be helpful.
How often do you experience outbreaks for herpetic whitlow, has it been after a few years or are there multiple outbreaks during a year?
I have had herpetic whitlow for 9 years now. Only in the last 2 years did I discover that I had herpetic whitlow and not a skin sensitivity. When I wash a lot of dishes or am exposed to harsh chemicals like bathroom cleaning supplies, I will have an outbreak.
The outbreaks are very painful and occur on my right middle finger. My finger develops tiny blisters in a cluster and my finger will double in size. I first experienced outbreaks in high school when I was a waitress and would wash a lot of dishes. The best treatment that I found is to use a bandaid and neosporin. I am careful not to contact anyone when I have an outbreak.
Over the years, I have had fewer episodes and I use neosporin immediately to reduce the duration of the outbreak. I have had very severe episodes in the past in which the blisters have become infected (mostly from when I washed dishes and was a waitress). It does get better as you get older and learn how to treat it and keep it clean and dry. The only downfall to wearing the bandaid is that it does not breathe very well. I suggest taking the bandaid off at night to give it breathing time.
It is not the end of the world. Good luck!
Hello: I’m just found your story and have shared it with a couple people with Whitlow’s. I am a “representative,” so to speak on the site, http://www.yoshi2me.com. I am one of the “H-Pals” who responds to writers who may have just contracted herpes and need support, info, etc. There are other STDs addressed, too, but mainly the HSV. If you want to write me direct, that would be fine, or you can go to the site and write to them. I was so glad to read you use Zovirax! I recommend it to every person who writes me. I have a site that sells natural oils, too. One writer told me the one for Herpes works great. The site is: http://fonoils.com/better.html If you want me to put you in touch with the othters who have the Whitlow’s, I will need your permission to give them contact info. You can send that to meat my Soytanlee@aol.com addy. Don’t let this thing rule your life..you rule it!
P.S. If you want to see my profile on the http://www.yoshi2me.com site, go to the site, click on H-Pals, then Florida. I am a rep for West Palm Beach and/Melbourne. Click and there I am. You can write me there or via my email. Probably better to use my email, as I will get it sooner. There is also info there about whitlow’s. Please pass along the Yoshi2me.com site to others who may need support for herpes or any STD. It is non-profit, btw.
Carol
@Nicole – You need to make the time whether you have the money or not to see a doctor. That’s the only way you are going to find out if you have what you “think” you have. Otherwise it’s just a waste of time to speculate.
Hello: so sorry you have the Whitlow’s but it sounds like you hve it under control at this point. Am thinking that perhaps you may want to go without a bandaid at some points during the day to allow drying up of the wound, as with any wound. Also, are you taking one of the viral suppressants, Valtrex or Famvir? Famvir, btw, has a one-day pill out now for those who may feel as though another outbreak may be trying to occur. http://www.Famvir.com
Also, wanted to mention the availability of finger cots which you can get at the drugstore. They look like tiny condoms but might be useful for when you have an outbreak. If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to contact me via the http://www.Yoshi2me.com site…go to H-Pals and I am Carol, from Florida. Wishing you all the best..and you control this virus, do not let it control you!
Hugs and caring,
Carol
Hi just wonderin does anybody know if it’s normal for Herpes whitlow to come back 3 times in the space of 3 months…my 2 year old has experienced dis :( :( he had to get an operation the first one he had as the infection got tat bad he had to get his finger and nail washed out :( he is on valtrex 1 month now and it stil came back :(
So sorry to hear about your 2 year old….my first whitlow outbreak was 6 months ago – I have not had another one since…I hope the information about my case will help out a little bit…..
I got my whitlow as an adult. I’ve only had one recurrence in 14 years and it didn’t amount to much because I started famvir as soon as I realized what it was.
I, too had to have a nail removed with the primary OB, but it grew back just fine.
I’m sorry your little one is having discomfort like this and I’m surprised that the valtrex isn’t helping. Maybe try Famvir instead.
Hi all,
I used to bite the skin around my nails and learnt a very hard lesson as a consequence. Back in 2000, I bit the skin and must have picked up an infection in it. Since then, I my middle finger on my right hand flares up to a point where if not treated with a cold sore cream because painfully sensitive to touch and I cannot bend my finger.
If I do not at least try and lessen the pain with cream, the pain tracks up my veins right up into my armpit. I then find my right arm feels very cold until the infection subsides again.
Typically, it arises when I am in a stressful situation or am feeling worn out from a cold or lots of work.
The worst it ever got was when after 17 days trekking in the Himalayas it flared up in the same finger it always does and ‘moved’ into my left hand as well. Everything got pretty bad and I had to go back down the mountains to receive proper treatment.
I have to say, after the first five years of doctors simply baffled and prescribing anti-biotics, it was great to be told the truth by a homeopathic doctor. This is the first time I’ve checked out a forum but this last session of infection has really worn me out! I now have it under the nail… yuck!
In addition, I received acupuncture and fire cupping at the weekend which is meant to clear out the nasties in your blood which caused my finger to flare back up – however, not as bad but I’m interested to know what the treatment did… I just wish I could banish this horrid infection!