Herpes.org Survey  2002-2006

Data was collected via a voluntary survey of people who had accessed the web site www.herpes.org from January 2002 to December 2006.  6573 people took the survey and the data was tabulated.  A summary of the data collected follows.

Gender

Female respondents outnumbered male respondents (63% vs. 37%).

Age

The largest percentage of respondents was in the age range of 25-44 years old (55%), followed by 18-24 years old (20%), and then by And then by 45-64 years old (17%).  There was no significant difference in reported age between males and females.

Race

The majority of respondents indicated that their race was Caucasian (66%), followed by African American (15%), and then by Hispanic (8%). There was no significant difference in indicated race between males and females.

 

Outbreak Location

The vast majority of respondents indicated the presence of herpes outbreaks on their genitals (80%).  A significantly smaller percentage cited the Mouth as an outbreak location (9%), followed by Face (3%) and Buttocks (2%). Unspecified Other locations also made up 2%.  There was no significant difference in reported outbreak locations between males and females.

Length of Time with Disease

The largest percentage of respondents reported having herpes from “1 month to 1 year” (28%), followed closely by “1 year to 5 years” (25%), and then “10 years or more” (18%), and “5-10 years” (12%).  There was no significant difference in reported length of time with disease between male and female respondents.

Prescription Anti-Viral Medications

Of those who reported using a prescription anti-viral medication, Acyclovir was by far the most popular (61%), followed by Valtrex (35%), and then by Famvir (at only 5%).

While there was no significant difference in the use of Famvir between males and females, there was a significant difference in use of Acyclovir and Valtrex. Males were more likely to use Acyclovir than females. (71% vs. 55%).  And females were more likely to use Valtrex than males. (40% vs. 25%).

Dosage Timing- Prescription Medications

The vast majority of respondents reported taking prescription medication “Only with Outbreaks” (78%), followed by “Everyday” (19%) and then by “Prior to Intimate Contact” (at only 3%). There was no significant difference in dosage timing of the prescription medications between male and female respondents.

Dosage Timing- Each Prescription Medication

There was a significant difference in dosage timing of medication when data was broken down for the different medications. Acyclovir users were nearly 8 times as likely to take the medication “Only with outbreaks” vs. “Everyday”. Whereas Valtrex users were less than 2 times as likely, and Famvir users were less than 3 times as likely. There was no significant difference in the dosage timing of each prescription medication between male and female respondents.

Use of Non-Prescription Medications

87% of respondents reported the use of at least one non-prescription medication.  The most popular was Lysine (70%), followed by Unspecified Other (18%), H-Balm (5%), Red Marine Algae (2%) and then by Herbs, Natural Supplements, and Exanol (each at 1%). There was no significant difference in the use of non-prescription medications between male and female respondents.

Use of Natural Remedies

69% of respondents reported using at least one natural (non-chemical) remedy. There was a slightly higher reported use of natural remedies in male versus female respondents (74% vs. 66%).

When tabulating natural remedy usage only, the results were very similar to those of overall non-prescription medication usage. The most popular was Lysine (87%), followed by H-Balm (6%), Red Marine Algae (2%) and then by Herbs, Natural Supplements, Exanol, and Vitamin C (each at 1%).

The specific herbs cited by respondents included: Propolis, St. John's Wort, Melissa, Licorice Root, Chinese Herbs,Cat's Claw, Lomatium,Valerian, Herbal Combinations, Oil of Oregano, Golden Seal, Cayenne Pepper, Lavender, Geranium, Elderberry, Eleuthero, and Reservatrol.

Country

There were 54 countries represented in this survey. USA was the most frequently cited country of residence (85%), followed by Canada (4%), UK (2%) and Australia (1%).  The top 4 countries (USA, Canada, UK and Australia) represented 92% of respondents.  8% of respondents were from 50 other nations.  There was no significant difference in country of residence between male and female respondents.

U.S. State

All 50 states (and D.C) were represented in this survey. The top 6 states indicated as place of residence among respondents were California (12%), Florida and New York (both at 8%), Texas (7%), and Illinois and Georgia (both at 4%).  The top 6 states represented 42% of respondents.  54% of respondents were from the other 44 states. (and D.C.)  4% of American respondents did not list a state.

Requested Newsletter

The majority of respondents requested that a Herpes informational e-newsletter be sent to them. (80%). There was no significant difference in request of the newsletter between male and female respondents.

 

 Provided E-mail Adress

The majority of respondents (77%) provided an e-mail address for further communication, either via the newsletter or for a physician referral. There was no significant difference in providing an e-mail address between male and female respondents.

Requested Physician

61% of respondents indicated interest in a physician referral.  Males were somewhat more likely to request a physician referral than females. (69% of males made the request versus 56% of females.)

If Requested Physician, in what city?

Among respondents requesting a physician, 30% did not indicate a city.  Where a city was indicated, New York was the most often cited (6%), followed by Atlanta, Chicago, Houston and Miami (each at 3%).  There was no significant difference in city indicated between male and female respondents.