In this two-part episode of ASHA’s Sex+Health podcast, Terri Warren, RN, ANP—nurse, author, and owner of Westover Heights Clinic in Portland, Oregon that specializes in the genital herpes infection—explains the tests that can provide an accurate genital herpes diagnosis and how they work and clarifies that a physical exam alone should never be the final diagnosis for anyone, for many reasons. She also discusses the importance of knowing herpes type and offers helpful insight into how to put a herpes infection into proper perspective.

Part One: Herpes Diagnostics

There are many approaches to diagnosing herpes including blood tests, swab tests, and– believe it or not – even eyeballing suspected symptoms and making a judgment call! Warren covers which tests should be used (spoiler alert: the eyeball approach is not recommended), who should have them, and how to make sense of the results.

Part Two: Love, Sex, and Herpes

In part two of our conversation, Terri Warren offers strategies to effectively manage herpes in a relationship and deal with the emotional aspects of the diagnosis.