Once you have the herpes simplex virus it lives in a nerve for life and reactivates when something lowers your defences: sunburn, a cold, stress, lack of sleep, your period, or a trip to the dentist stretching the lip. Knowing your trigger is the most useful prevention there is.
For most people the tingle comes a day before the blister. That window is when treatment works. Aciclovir cream from the shop helps a little; aciclovir tablets reach the virus in the nerve and reliably shorten and soften the outbreak if started within 48 hours. Our pharmacists supply the five-day tablet course privately — see the cold sore service and why tablets beat cream.
Prevention: SPF lip balm if sun is your trigger, sleep and stress management if you can, and don’t share cups, lip products or towels during an outbreak. Cold sores are contagious until fully scabbed.
See a doctor rather than the pharmacy if a sore is near your eye, if outbreaks are very frequent or large, or if you have a weakened immune system — those may need longer courses or suppressive treatment.
15-minute pharmacist consultation, supplied under a Patient Group Direction. Book a time at any of our six branches or walk in.
Book or find out more →We use essential cookies to make the site work — things like your basket, sign-in and secure checkout. With your permission we’d also like to use analytics cookies to understand how the site is used and improve it. See our cookie policy.
