Aciclovir tablets work faster and better than the creams you can buy — especially if you catch the tingle early or get cold sores often. Now available privately from our pharmacists.
A 15-minute consultation with a GPhC-registered pharmacist. Supplied under a Patient Group Direction — the same medicine a GP would prescribe.
How often you get them, whether this one has just started, and your general health.
Kidney problems and a few medicines matter with aciclovir.
25 tablets: one five times a day for five days. Starting within 48 hours makes the biggest difference.
The pharmacist checks the full criteria at your consultation. If this service isn’t right for you, we’ll tell you what is — and there’s nothing to pay.
Only branches that offer this service are shown. Prefer to walk in? Just come to the counter — a booking guarantees the pharmacist is free.
Cream is fine for the occasional mild sore if started at the very first tingle. Tablets get the drug to the nerve where the virus hides, so they shorten outbreaks more reliably — the better option if you get them often or badly.
Not with this course, but starting tablets at the first tingle each time keeps outbreaks short and mild. Sunscreen on the lips helps if sun triggers yours.
Yes, until fully scabbed over. Avoid kissing and sharing cups, and keep away from newborns and anyone with eczema or a weak immune system.
Read more: Cold sores: why tablets beat cream, and how to catch them early · Recurrent cold sores: triggers, prevention and the tablet course that shortens them
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.
