Whitlow: Treatments

How is whitlow treated?

In many cases, a whitlow infection will heal without treatment after two to three weeks. Although there is no treatment that will eliminate herpes simplex virus from your body, your health care provider may suggest medications to improve the symptoms of whitlow.

Treatments to manage symptoms

To manage or reduce the symptoms of whitlow, your heath care provider may recommend or prescribe:

• Analgesics, such as ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin) and acetaminophen (Tylenol), to reduce pain and fever, if present
• Antiviral medications, such as acyclovir (Zovirax), famciclovir (Famvir), and valacyclovir (Valtrex), to prevent or manage the infection, especially in individuals with frequent or severe infections or compromised immune systems
• Topical anesthetics, such as prilocaine, lidocaine, benzocaine, and tetracaine, to reduce local itching and pain on the fingers

What are the potential complications of whitlow?

Rarely, complications of untreated whitlow can be serious. You can help minimize your risk of serious complications by following the treatment plan you and your health care professional design specifically for you. Complications of whitlow include:

• Encephalitis (inflammation and swelling of the brain due to a viral infection or other causes)
• Meningitis (infection or inflammation of the sac around the brain and spinal cord)
• Severe discomfort or pain
• Skin ulcerations and infections
• Spread of infection
• Tenosynovitis (tendon inflammation)

References:

Herpes simplex. MedlinePlus, a service of the National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health. http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/001324.htm. Accessed April 24, 2011.

Yao P. Clinical vignette: herpetic whitlow. UCLA Department of Medicine. http://www.med.ucla.edu/modules/wfsection/article.php?articleid=252. Accessed April 24, 2011.