Cold sore guide
This guide is for typical lip or mouth cold sore outbreaks, not for severe facial infection, major swelling, or serious eye involvement.
Start online
Cold sore treatment can sometimes be handled online when the outbreak pattern is typical and there are no warning signs for a more serious infection.
If treatment is appropriate, your physician can send a non-controlled prescription to your pharmacy and provide portal instructions for the next step.
Quick facts
Common symptoms
May fit online care
Look for another care setting
What to have ready
What happens next
Start the request on the website, answer a few questions to check that this visit fits you, and choose how fast you want an answer (the response window). If your concern still fits this service, a physician reviews it and sends you a secure update after you sign in. When appropriate, non-controlled prescriptions can be sent to your pharmacy, and a basic work or school note can be included at physician discretion.
Your physician
Every visit is personally reviewed by Ankur Fadia, MD. He is board-certified, has extra training in heart care (a cardiology fellowship), and is a member of Alpha Omega Alpha, a medical honor society. He is licensed in Virginia and West Virginia, and your care is never handed off to someone else.
Often, yes. Patients usually do best when they start the request early in the outbreak, especially at the tingling or blistering stage.
The cold sore virus can affect the eye. Eye pain, redness, or vision symptoms (changes in your vision) should be evaluated (checked) in person promptly (without delay).
Yes. Daily suppressive therapy (daily medicine to prevent outbreaks) for frequent oral or genital herpes recurrences (cold sores or genital herpes that keep coming back) is handled through our separate herpes suppression visit, which also covers episodic courses (treatment for a single outbreak) for genital outbreaks in people already diagnosed. See the Herpes suppression guide at /conditions/herpes-suppression-treatment-online-virginia-west-virginia. This cold sore visit stays focused on treating a single active flare (one active outbreak).
Yes. If you already know your cold sore outbreak is a good match for online care, our quick-start cold sore visit page covers current pricing and response windows before you begin the intake.
Start a cold sore visit nowNot quite what you have? Here are other conditions we treat.
Questions about your treatment, prescription, or pharmacy?
Message Dr. FadiaNot for emergencies. For emergencies, call 911.
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For questions about your care, use the patient portal.