Biopsy confirms the clinical diagnosis. Treatment is with excision, cryosurgery, laser evaporation, or interferon injection. Herpes simplex frequently can produce recurrent painful episodes of ulceration. These small, shallow ulcers can be found on all mucosal surfaces and may coalesce to form larger ulcerations and become hemorrhagic. Frequent recurrent episodes appear during advanced stages of HIV disease.
Diagnosis usally is based on clinical appearance.
Patients with severe infection may require up to 800 mg 4 times per day. These viral infections can be life-threatening and can require hospitalization and IV therapy. The surface may become so thick that hairlike projections appear. HIV-positive patients with OHL will often develop AIDS within 24 months, if they haven t already. Treatment of OHL is not necessary, because the lesion is painless, nontransmittable, and nonneoplastic.