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Help May Be On The Way For Herpes
Help may be on the way for people living with genital herpes, with a leading clinical trial about to take place to investigate a potential new investigational medication.
Herpes simplex causes cold sores in the oral or genital area – they are usually spread by intimate contact.
It is estimated that 80% of New Zealanders have at least one of the viruses that can cause genital herpes.
New Zealand Herpes Foundation spokesperson Dame Susan Bagshaw said genital herpes (herpes simplex virus) is a very common infection that isn’t talked about much.
“There is a lot of stigma around genital herpes, but essentially it's just cold sores down below. For many people, genital herpes is an occasional nuisance, but for a small number of people it can be a reoccurring problem,” said Bagshaw.
“The stigma about herpes is stopping people talking about it. If we learn the facts about cold sores on the face or genital region and talk to each other, we will remove the fear.”
“Having more options to enable people to be able to manage herpes would be great.”
New Zealand Clinical Research spokesperson Professor Ed Gane said the clinical trial will investigate the viability of a potential new medicine designed to prevent HSV-2 from reactivating itself to help prevent recurrences of genital herpes.
“If you are a healthy, between 18 and 60 years old and have a history of recurrent genital herpes, you may be eligible to participate in this clinical trial, which will investigate a new oral medication for genital herpes. By blocking the virus, the medication should prevent recurrence of symptoms and also reduce the risk of spreading the virus to others.
"Unlike the current medications, this new tablet could be taken once a week or less frequently,” said Gane.
Participants may be reimbursed up to $3,900 before tax for participating in the trial. The study involves clinic visits to NZCR's Auckland or Christchurch research facilities.
More information about the eligibility criteria and the study details can be found at www.nzcr.co.nz/quail.
More information about genital herpes can be found www.herpes.org.nz.
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