Cure for Cold Sores?

Though no one has ever tallied the exact number, millions of people--probably one out of every ten--suffer at various times from cold sores. Produced by the herpes simplex virus, the unsightly sores appear on the lips, around the eyes or even on the genitals, and can cause swelling and considerable discomfort before they run their two-week course and disappear. Doctors have been able to do little for most cold-sore sufferers except minimize their discomfort with soothing medications. But now a team of dermatologists at the Baylor University College of Medicine in Houston has developed a treatment that promises to relieve herpes infection and reduce recurrences.

Based on five years of research, the new treatment uses a light-sensitive dye to disrupt the development of the virus. According to Dr. Troy Felber, who headed the Baylor team, the photoactive dye combines with the viral genetic material, or DNA, to increase its sensitivity to light. Once this occurs, visible light, which is absorbed by the dye, apparently breaks the DNA strands, causing the virus to expire.

Rapid Relief. Applying the treatment, doctors simply puncture early cold-sore blisters and put a neutral red dye at the base of the lesions. They then expose the sore to the light of an ordinary 15-watt fluorescent tube for 15 minutes, wait one to six hours and repeat the process.

Tested on more than 100 patients, the treatment, which is not yet generally available, has proved promising.

Most patients reported rapid relief from the pain of their cold sores, often within an hour of the first exposure to light. Fully 90% reported that their cold sores formed a painless crust within 24 hours and disappeared completely in three to five days.

Felber's treatment also resulted in fewer recurrences. One group of 32 patients, who had suffered from at least four cold-sore outbreaks a year, reported only half as many after the treatment; some have gone eight to 16 months without a visit from the virus.

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