Why the emphasis to wash your hands after touching a cold sore? Wouldn't the virus die within seconds?

Almost every website about Herpes Simplex says the same thing. They say that Herpes doesn%26#039;t survive long outside the body, so getting it from a toilet seat or some surface like that is next to impossible, but at the same time, they emphasize to wash your hands frequently during an outbreak to avoid autoinoculation of other body parts, and especially after touching a cold sore. This information seems contradictory, and I%26#039;ve never heard anyone address this issue. If Herpes survives outside the body for about ten seconds like I%26#039;ve read, what difference does it make if it%26#039;s on your hands or on a toilet seat? The only difference I see is the temperature, but they only address temperature when referring to Herpes surviving in a moist environment, like a wet towel. If it%26#039;s on a dry environment like on your hand, wouldn%26#039;t the virus die within a matter of minutes, if not seconds, without hand washing, or does the temperature of your skin alone keep the virus alive longer?|||I don%26#039;t know exactly how long HSV-1 can survive outside the body but it isn%26#039;t long. Yet it%26#039;s long enough to be transmitted, if statistics are anything to go by.





The emphasis on handwashing is because HSV-1 is transmitted mostly by lesions, secretions and viral shedding. You already know that touching a lesion transmits the virus to the fingers. But do you have any idea how many times a day you unconsciously touch other parts of your face? Your eye area, for instance?





The advice to perform handwashing after touching isn%26#039;t contradictory. It%26#039;s common sense. Your hand may be dry but the secretions containing the virus are not.|||Though the virus doesn%26#039;t live outside the body for long, it%26#039;s not just seconds. As well, the risk of autoinoculation is high. There are many, many cases of herpetic whitlow as a result of autoinoculation. In addition, it is possible to transmit the virus through asymptomatic viral shedding- so a person could have the virus and shed it without knowing. Most importantly, correct hand hygiene is the single most effective way to prevent the spread of organisms- whatever the organism may be.