Comments on: How can you tell if you've got a cold sore or just a zit?

By: The Great and Powerful OZ

The Great and Powerful OZ — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 08:32:43 +0000

I get a cold sore maybe once or twice a year. They suck. The don’t head up like a zit. They get a crusty, yellowish scab and crack when you open your mouth.
They burn like an extreme case of chapped lips. Sometimes they’ll get the size of a dime… but I’ve had them be so small that they can barely be seen. Usually at the corner of the mouth. Untreated they can last a week or two.

From what I understand they are a strand of the Herpes virus, and are contagious.

They have some ointment that you can get over the counter that will usually knock them out in a couple days.

I hope that you have a zit.

By: vsecrets24

vsecrets24 — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 08:32:43 +0000

Whatever it is keep your hands off of it. If it is a coldsore you have the chance of making it spread. If I get a cold sore I usually use abreva for the first few days and then after that I let it dry out. How long have you had it? Cold sores don’t always get bigger, just depends if you fester them or not…….

By: shortstuff

shortstuff — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 08:32:43 +0000

a cold sore is usually in the mouth or on the lip….

By: Psalm37-29

Psalm37-29 — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 08:32:43 +0000

A zit or pimple will eventually come to a head, and when mature and pricked to open, will ooze out whitish pus.

A cold sore will be flatter and redder than a zit, and will not have the pointed look of a pimple, nor will it contain white pus.

Yes, this may be an "icky" question, but a good one, nonetheless.

By: c_schumacker

c_schumacker — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 08:32:43 +0000

A cold sore has an acute phase where there is typically swelling and warmth, with small, discrete vessicals, followed by a resolution with some scabbing and finally healing. They usually erupt at the same place or roughly the same place over and over.

I think everyone has experienced acne and goes without a discription. I can’t think of any case where I have seen acne occur at the corner of someone’s mouth.

What this really sounds like is a minor fungal/yeast infection called "angular cheiltis." It is made worse by moisture/saliva from your mouth. There are oral anti-fungal medications (Nystatin swish and swallow) that would be useful. You may also or alternatively try anti-fungal cream applied directly on the lesion (but are not for oral use, so don’t swallow it). Keeping the lesion dry is also key in improving the condition.

I looked the condition up and see that there are a couple of other common causes – iron deficiency anemia and riboflavin deficiency. Further this particular sorce suggests in addition to the antifungal agent to use hydrocortisone and antibiotic ointment all together.
Good luck.

By: bobfartly

bobfartly — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 08:32:43 +0000

How can you not tell. Maybe, when you graduate junior high you will know the difference.