I'm a heterosexual man. I recently tested negative by blood test for both herpes strains. I've never experienced herpes symptoms. I've never had sexual contact or kissed anybody, but likely will in the future.

These are the options I'm weighing for managing herpes with some questions:

Option #1 – I'm thinking about deliberately causing a genital HSV1 infection to preempt an oral infection. My reasoning is that most people get HSV1 at some point. I don't like the idea of HSV1 symptoms on the face, but the idea of having it on the genitals does not sound as bad, as symptoms are not as visible.

From what I understand, somebody infected with HSV is unlikely to get re-infected with the same type in another part of the body.

Is it possible to obtain an HSV1 infection from a medical professional, or would this have to be done in a non-clinical setting? What is the likelihood that HSV1 will indeed set up a genital infection and not become an oral infection?

Besides the location of the symptoms themselves, in what ways does a genital HSV1 infection differ from an oral HSV1 infection? Are there differences in the average frequency of outbreaks, etc? I want to make sure genital HSV1 isn't worse, just a different location.

Option #2 – The other alternative is to choose a partner based on the results of a blood test for the disease. How likely would this plan be effective at preventing me from getting infected? How could it fail?

Hello again. Thank you for the great information!

You had indicated that there are indeed different strains of the HSV 1 virus, and that most HSV 1 strains are pretty mild when infecting the genitals, although there are exceptions.

Assuming I end up choosing the option of causing an HSV 1 genital infection to preempt an HSV 1 oral infection, and that I’m successful in doing so despite the logistical difficulties you mention, I'd want to make sure that the strain of HSV 1 with which I become infected is the most mild strain possible.

Has medical science classified and named each of the HSV 1 strains? If so, what is each of their names? How many HSV 1 strains are there, and what is the severity profile of each (with respect to the extent which it manifests symptoms)?

Are there tests available which can differentiate between the various HSV 1 strains? For example, let’s say I find a candidate who is willing to offer me oral sex. Could I send her for some kind of a test to make sure she’s got the most mild strain of HSV 1 out there?

I assume it’s not possible to acquire more than one HSV 1 strain. (Please correct me if I’m wrong.)

As for false negatives, you indicated IgG blood test misses 8% of HSV 2 and 30% of HSV 1. However, I’m still not clear exactly what percent of each type the Western Blot misses.