Can I spread HSV1 from my genitals to my mouth

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i was diagnosed with genital hsv1. my bf had his first genital hsv1 break out right after mine. im pretty sure i unknowingly had it and speead to him since i broke out first. so since we both have genital hsv1 is it possible to spread it to our mouths?

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  • Posted

    you can be very unlikely but Having hsv-1 in one location does usually provides you with enough immunity to the virus to prevent you getting hsv-1 in a second location.

    For example, if you have oral hsv-1 first you shouldn't get genital hsv-1.

    However, there are two situations when it does occasionally seem to happen.

    Once you have had an hsv-1 infection in one place for a while you build up an immunity to catching it elsewhere on your body.

    All the people I have met on the internet who have both genital and oral hsv-1 caught the second infection within 3 months of catching the first.

    Most people have a very high level of immunity after the first six months to a year, but some people can be unlucky if their immune system is not very good.

    However, for the vast majority of people, having hsv-1 in one place for over 6 months or so results in an effective immunity to catching it somewhere else which is why that is the standard medical advice given by the Herpes Viruses Association.

    "If you and your partner have the same virus you will not reinfect each other - even on a different part of the body. So, if you have caught it genitally from your partner’s facial cold sores, he or she will not catch the virus back on the genitals."

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