If you or someone you care about is concerned that they may have herpes, then you know that it can be a very worrisome time with a long list of questions. What makes it even more difficult is that you might be hearing conflicting and confusing information.
Testing for Herpes when symptoms are present
If there are visible or active symptoms, such as sores, small bumps, crusted over lesions or small tears in the skin, then a healthcare provider can do a swab of the area and send it out for a PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction ) evaluation. This is the most accurate way to test because it looks for the viral DNA, which is present even after a few days of symptoms. We don’t use cultures any more because they are not as reliable.
