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Viruses are capsules with genetic material inside. They are very tiny, much smaller than bacteria. Viruses cause familiar infectious diseases such as the common cold, flu and warts. They also cause severe illnesses such as HIV/AIDS, smallpox and hemorrhagic fevers.

Viruses are like hijackers. They invade living, normal cells and use those cells to multiply and produce other viruses like themselves. This eventually kills the cells, which can make you sick.

Viral infections are hard to treat because viruses live inside your body's cells. They are "protected" from medicines, which usually move through your bloodstream. Antibiotics do not work for viral infections. There are a few antiviral medicines available. Vaccines can help prevent you from getting many viral diseases.

NIH: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases

Symptoms of Viral Infections

The following features are indicative of Viral Infections:
  • stuffy or runny nose
  • sneezing
  • coughing
  • sore throat
  • mild fever
  • weakness
  • headache
  • aching joints
  • mucous membrane growths
  • black dots
  • rough bumps
  • rash
  • swollen lymph glands
  • fatigue
  • diarrhea
  • weight loss
  • night sweat
  • yeast infection
It is possible that Viral Infections shows no physical symptoms and still is present in a patient.

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Common Causes of Viral Infections

The following are the most common causes of Viral Infections:
  • rhinoviruses
  • respiratory syncytial virus
  • human parainfluenza viruses
  • human metapneumovirus
  • human papillomavirus

Other Causes of Viral Infections

The following are the less common causes of Viral Infections:
  • transmission via airborne droplets
  • direct contact with infected nasal secretions
  • prolonged exposure to cold weather
  • HIV/AIDS
  • fall in CD4 count
  • sexual contact
  • blood transfusion
  • sharing needles
  • pregnancy
  • breastfeeding

Risk Factors for Viral Infections

The following factors may increase the likelihood of Viral Infections:
  • weakened immune system
  • smoking
  • damaged skin
  • unprotected sex
  • other sexually transmitted infections
  • use sharing needles

Prevention of Viral Infections

Yes, it may be possible to prevent Viral Infections. Prevention may be possible by doing the following:
  • wash hands daily with soap and water
  • do not touch your nose, mouth and eyes with unwashed hands
  • stay away from sick or infected people
  • get vaccinated against human papillomavirus
  • use condoms
  • HIV test before doing sex
  • be monogamous
  • limit sexual partners
  • do not douche
  • do not abuse drugs or alcohol
  • preventing mother to child transmission
  • avoid breast feeding

Occurrence of Viral Infections

Number of Cases

The following are the number of Viral Infections cases seen each year worldwide:
  • Very common > 10 Million cases

Common Age Group

Viral Infections can occur at any age.

Common Gender

Viral Infections can occur in any gender.

Lab Tests and Procedures for Diagnosis of Viral Infections

The following lab tests and procedures are used to detect Viral Infections:
  • Chest X-ray: To diagnose common cold
  • Pap test: To examine the abnormalities that can lead to cancer
  • DNA test: To analyze the DNA of the high-risk varieties of Human papillomavirus
  • Vinegar solution test: To recognize the lesions
  • Screening test: To check the presence of HIV antibody and antigen in blood sample
  • CD4 count: To check CD4 (white blood cells) count
  • Viral load: To measure the amount of virus in blood
  • Drug resistance: To check the resistance of the HIV strain to anti-HIV medications
  • Other lab tests: To test other infections like tuberculosis, hepatitis, urinary tract infections, sexually transmitted infections

Doctor for Diagnosis of Viral Infections

Patients should visit the following specialists if they have symptoms of Viral Infections:
  • Infectious disease specialist
  • Dermatologist
  • Podiatrist
  • Gynecologist
  • Urologist
  • HIV specialist

Complications of Viral Infections if untreated

Yes, Viral Infections causes complications if it is not treated. Below is the list of complications and problems that may arise if Viral Infections is left untreated:
  • asthma
  • acute sinusitis
  • strep throat
  • pneumonia
  • croup
  • bronchiolitis
  • tuberculosis
  • cytomegalovirus
  • candidiasis
  • cryptococcal meningitis
  • toxoplasmosis
  • cryptosporidiosis
  • kaposi's sarcoma
  • lymphomas
  • wasting syndrome
  • neurological complications
  • kidney disease

Procedures for Treatment of Viral Infections

The following procedures are used to treat Viral Infections:
  • Cryotherapy: Freezing with liquid nitrogen that destroys the tissue
  • Loop electrosurgical excision procedure: Eliminating the cervical tissue by using a hot wire loop
  • Surgical conization: To alleviate a cone-shaped piece of tissue from the cervix and cervical canal
  • Laser vaporization conization: To kill the cervical tissue
  • Antiretroviral therapy: Raises the CD4 cell count

Medicines for Viral Infections

Below is the list of medicines used for Viral Infections:

Self-care for Viral Infections

The following self-care actions or lifestyle changes may help in the treatment or management of Viral Infections:
  • Avoid nail biting: Avoid nail biting helps in preventing the human papillomavirus infection
  • Avoid multiple sex partners: By lowering the number of sex partners helps in transmitting the infection
  • Using latex condom: Protects from developing warts

Alternative Medicine for Treatment of Viral Infections

The following alternate medicine and therapies are known to help in the treatment or management of Viral Infections:
  • Apply chloroform extracts of garlic: Helps in relieving cutaneous warts

Patient Support for Treatment of Viral Infections

The following actions may help Viral Infections patients:
  • Education: By providing education about safe sexual practices and warnings about tobacco use
  • Join support group: Helps in managing HIV

Time for Treatment of Viral Infections

While time-period of treatment for each patient may vary, below is the typical time-period for Viral Infections to resolve if treated properly under an expert supervision:
  • Disease cannot be treated but only maintained or effects reduced

Is Viral Infections Infectious?

Yes, Viral Infections is known to be infectious. It can spread across people via the following means:
  • hand-to-hand contact with infected people
  • contact with respiratory secretions or stool from an infected person
  • direct sexual contact
  • blood transfusion
  • sharing needles
  • pregnant mother to fetus
  • breast feeding

Last updated date

This page was last updated on 2/04/2019.
This page provides information for Viral Infections.
Chickenpox
Chikungunya
Common Cold
Coronavirus Infections
Croup
Cytomegalovirus Infections
Dengue
Ebola
Fifth Disease
Flu
Hantavirus Infections
Hemorrhagic Fevers
Hepatitis C
Herpes Simplex
HIV/AIDS
HPV
Immunization
Infectious Mononucleosis
Measles
Monkeypox Virus Infections
Mumps
Norovirus Infections
Polio and Post-Polio Syndrome
Rabies
Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infections
Rotavirus Infections
Rubella
Shingles
Warts
West Nile Virus
Zika Virus

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