Tuesday, September 30, 2008

I've never been a fan of wrestling ...

... and this just gives me more of a reason to not care about it.
"Scrumpox", or herpes gladiatorum, is a skin infection caused by the herpes virus, which can cause coldsores. It is spread through direct skin-to-skin contact so it is common among rugby players and wrestlers. Symptoms can start with a sore throat and swollen glands and the telltale blisters appear on the face, neck, arms or legs. The disease is highly infectious, so players who are infected are often taken out of competition to stop the virus from spreading.
Lovely, huh?

Even better, once you have herpes, you have it for life.
"Herpes virus can hide in nerve cells for long periods of time and symptoms can reappear later," said Dr Yanagi.
Yay?

Oh, and this particular strain? Deadly.
"Two of the wrestlers died as a result of their infections, so cases like this do need to be investigated," said Dr Yanagi.
Which runs counter to most herpes infections. Typically, it just creates open, quite attractive looking sores on the affected areas of your body.

No comments: