Acyclovir topical for Cold Sores User Reviews

• John
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• February 16, 2021

Zovirax Cream (acyclovir) "I'm from the UK, and have had cold sores all my life (40s) Zovirax is a complete waste of money. For years I used it because I believed the marketing - and i thought that cold sores just got bigger, but about 5 years ago I tried just leaving well alone. Without Zovirax, they crust faster, don't spread and heal faster and more naturally. With Zovirax, I find it burns the skin, they spread (keep popping up outside the original zone) and scar for longer. I've also not really found that Zovirax prevents them if you get there during the original tingling either. Also - the tube size is a scandal."

• Kirsty
• May 9, 2016

Zovirax Cream (acyclovir) "I do suffer from cold sores, especially when I'm stressed. Unfortuently I don't get the tingling stage, I just wake up to a bump on my lip. For anyone that knows me, I absolutely hate cold sores! It makes me feel so crap about myself. I used to suffer really bad to the point it would spread, and it would have 3-4 coldsores on my lips very painful! Nothing would help. Until I found this cream! It is an angel from above, a God send. This cream clears my coldsores up within a day!! So next morning I wake up and it's gone, even when it's blistered, it's gone! It's expensive for a tiny tube but defiantly worth it!!"

• Deedee
• November 22, 2015

Zovirax Cream (acyclovir) "I have been suffering with cold sores for 20 years now, they usually happen once a year. I am so horrified when they happen, I take work off, and basically live in my house for 2 weeks. I came across a YouTube video after feeling a bump coming on and that's when I came across Zovirax. I thought what the heck I've tried everything else. I went to my doctor same day (thank god I got in). It cost me about 90$ but it was worth it. This stuff is a god send! My cold sore was already at the blister stage so it was day 2. Applied the cream all day for 2 days, you can't even tell I have a cold sore! There is nothing! I wish I knew about this stuff years ago. Would have saved me a lot of agony."

• Cold
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 5, 2019

Zovirax Cream (acyclovir) "I'm also from the UK and like most of the comments from the UK, the cream does not help. Again bought some and it seems to make it spread. I'm sure if I didn't use it it would not be as bad as it is this morning. Maybe there IS a difference between US and UK . I must remind myself not to bother with this again.... try something else... pity"

• Jemsg...
• February 21, 2012

Zovirax Ointment (acyclovir) "I have been dealing with cold sores for the past 10 years. I usually would only get 2 per year during an extreme weather change. I've tried Abreva, Releev, Campho, etc.... Nothing really worked at all accept drying the area. Well this Fall and Winter season, I had 3 outbreaks and at the 3rd, I said enough is enough. I read all the reviews online and decided to go with the Zovirax ointment. I got a prescription from my dentist 1st day I noticed the tingling (prodromal stage). The meds indicate this is the best time to start applying. I applied several times the first day and the next day I woke up and hardly saw a thing on my lip. I applied the ointment about 5 times that day even tho it seemed to be gone. 3rd day GONE!!! Miracle!!"

• Arjun
• Taken for less than 1 month
• March 30, 2020

Zovirax Cream (acyclovir) "The worst stuff I have ever used. It burnt and scarred my skin. The cold sore was almost invisible, and Zovirax burnt it and thee surrounding skin. It made it look awful, and made it painful, and took three weeks to heal. NEVER AGAIN, Beware!"

• Ramboo
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• February 8, 2015

Zovirax Ointment (acyclovir) "I have tried everything, from home remedies to over the counter cold sore treatments. Well, my doctor prescribed Zovirax and since then I have been nothing but thankful. The first sign, apply the ointment. It wont make the cold sore go away immediately but by the 2nd day its dried up and within 4 days its gone. I love Zovirax."

• Lynsay
• Taken for 10 years or more
• March 20, 2017

Zovirax Ointment (acyclovir) "COLD SORE TREATMENTS AND PREVENTION THAT WORK: L-lysine: You can buy L-lysine over the counter in tablet form, one a day pretty much prevents cold sores from forming. If you run out of tablets make sure you buy more; it's like the virus sits inactive under the skin just waiting for a break from the L-lysine treatment so it can raise it's ugly head. ZOVIRAX: If you feel a cold sore coming on or you have a cold sore buy Zovirax from the chemist or supermarket ~$17 a tube; but you only need a little bit applied 5 or 6 times a day and the last application should be before you go to sleep (whenever you think of applying it really) Zovirax helps heal the blisters much faster than anything else l have tried. ICE OR COLD PACK: If you don't have Zovirax and the cold sore is really burning and itchy get a freezer bag or similar and put some ice in it or some frozen peas and apply that to the area until that nasty burning and itchy feeling eases. Avoid licking of playing with the blisters with your tongue, this tends to make them bigger. Pop the Blisters or Don't Pop the Blisters? This is a personal preference however, l have found that by not popping the blisters only allows the blisters to grow bigger to the point of them sometimes joining together and becoming one big blister which takes a lot longer to heal, hence, l pop the blister and apply Zovirax straight away and the majority are gone within a few days. SAFETY FIRST: DO NOT have oral sex and AVOID kissing anyone when you have an active cold sore; they do spread as quickly as a peck on the lips from someone with the active cold sore virus and wash your hands if you touch your mouth by accident, this helps prevent spreading the cold sore virus. PREVENTION: Take L-lysine 1 tablet daily and try to avoid sudden drops in temperature, excessive sun or wind. Changes in climate conditions and temperature drops can bring on the cold sore virus. Avoid rubbing your lips hard like we sometimes do to remove stubborn lipstick and avoid the hard bristles of a man's beard or regrowth, both of these things can irritate the sensitive skin on our lips. Just be mindful of the cold sore virus and it will become second nature to prevent it from occurring."

• jpewt...
• January 12, 2011

Zovirax Ointment (acyclovir) "I find this the only treatment which can nip a cold sore before it develops. If one does develop, it also eliminates the pain faster (2-3 days) than any other creams I've tried. I also discovered after more than five years of annoying outbreaks that cold sores in the summer actually came from sunburned lips. Once I started to completely cover my lips before spending time in the sun, they did not come back. Here, prevention is the key."

• Shannon
• February 4, 2016

Zovirax Cream (acyclovir) "living in UK i doubt if the ingredients are changed in zovirax here but I've been getting cold sores (mayby 10-15 a year..) since I was little and have always been using zovirax and now more commonly the compeed patches. The stuff is useless if anything it spreads it around even though I keep immaculate hygene with them, only using cotton but to apply etc. The only thing the cream seems to do is hold it at the stage its at and as soon as the cream is off for more than half a day it erupts again... I can have the cream on for ten days at a time. NOT CHEAP AND NOT EFFECTIVE. HELP"

• K-Pop
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• December 17, 2015

Zovirax Cream (acyclovir) "Honestly one of the best treatments for HSV or coldsores around! I start feeling a cold sore coming on (a tingling, burning sensation) and on goes the Zovirax. Instant relief from the pain and the sore stops in it's tracks! Definitely worth every penny of that "

• Anonymous
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• December 16, 2017

Zovirax Cream (acyclovir) "OMG LOL extremely ridiculous how Zovirax cream expensive in USA $700 plus! Zovirax cream It costs in other countries less than $20.00 It's very sad how they take advantage of people here in USA. Less than $20. Lol same Zovirax cream. Have mercy on people and stop using them like this!"

• Jzee
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 10, 2018

Zovirax Cream (acyclovir) "Zorvirax duo honestly works wonders! As soon as I feel the tingling I lather it on and it’s gone the next day! There are also tablets that you can take but they only work if the cold sore hasn’t appeared yet and you’re only getting the tingling sensation. Just ask for them at your chemist. They’re 3 pills and you take them all at once and the cold sore doesn’t even come up. I got my lips done and I got a cold sore the next day used the cream and it was gone. I went to get them done a second time and took the tablets as a precaution and no cold sore even appeared! Love love love the cream!"

• Amaze...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• March 2, 2018

Zovirax Cream (acyclovir) "Zovirax cream is amazing. I hardly ever get an actual cold sore anymore, because I apply the cream as soon as I feel any tingle and it prevents the outbreak. Well, 3 days ago, I missed the tingle because I had a huge pimple forming on my chin, just under my lip, and it was so painful that it masked the tingle on my lip. By the time I woke up & realized what was happening, my lip had already swollen quite badly. I was horrified & thought the battle was already lost, but I immediately started applying Zovirax. My lip still swelled up to 3 times its size over the next 36 hours, but then it started to recede and never even blistered! It is now 3 days after it started & my lip is almost back to normal. I cannot believe it worked when the cold sore had already taken hold, and stopped the blisters from erupting. I love this stuff so much! It cost about $80 for a 5g tube the last time I bought it, but it lasts a long time for me. I always carry it in my purse so I am armed for battle."

• Anon
• Taken for 10 years or more
• January 17, 2022

Zovirax Cream (acyclovir) "I have had coldsores for 20 years. In the last few years of using Zovirax, I have noticed it makes the sores far worse and they have been taking two full weeks to heal and leaving a red mark for months afterwards (instead of 7 - 10 days like they used to). It occurred to me that the coldsore got a lot worse after applying the Zovirax cream, including making the coldsore and surrounding skin peal really badly and go red. I have had a big outbreak on my lip less than 72 hours ago and for the first time, I decided not to apply Zovirax cream but instead have just put a blob on Vaseline on it instead. The sore started healing straight away and is almost invisible in just three days! I cannot believe it and I can't believe that Zovirax has been making my sores worse these past few years. I won't ever be using it again."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• February 17, 2018

Zovirax Cream (acyclovir) "Zovirax does work. The trick is to apply small amounts as soon as possible and as often as possible. The more times you apply the more chances you have of healing quicker. Applying 3 x a day just aint going to cut it. (Every hour or less if you have to)"

• Anonymous
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• July 19, 2018

Zovirax Cream (acyclovir) "The cold sores usually don't even appear if I apply the cream at the first signs of tingling. Once, I failed to catch the tingly symptoms at the start, and only realised when my lips began to harden and split. I rushed to the pharmacy to purchase Zovirax, and I managed to dodge the embarrassing process of allowing the cold sore to fully blister and crust. I bet no one even suspected I had cold sores. I don't know why everyone is comparing prices here, but it costs approximately USD $15 for a 2g tube where I come from. Just apply a little will do, I'm not sure why someone mentioned finishing the 2g tube within 3 days. It can last me two years, before it expires. Read the directions that it comes with."

• Sharon
• Taken for less than 1 month
• July 22, 2021

Zovirax Cream (acyclovir) "I used this in the UK. £7. For a tiny tube. Which would have been worth it if it had worked. It advised to use 'liberally ' on affected area which I did. The cold sore was one of the ones that's on the are on the edge of your lip and into the inner part inside your mouth. The cream kept sticking to my upper lip. When I went to brush my teeth that night my gums were bright red really painful and bleeding. I rinsed my mouth with lots of water and wiped off the Zovirax and that calmed things down a bit. If that wasn't bad enough my cold sore is now far worse. I would advise. Don't use this product. 0/10"

• GSmith
• December 10, 2016

Zovirax Cream (acyclovir) "Had to immediately clean it off my lips. The burning from this cream was far too intense for me. I'm 35 weeks pregnant so my immune system is already compromised. This is the worst cold sore outbreak I've had, where pills, supplements, home remedies, and Abreva hasn't helped. I pray that it clears up soon."

• Sunny
• Taken for less than 1 month
• April 20, 2021

Zovirax Cream (acyclovir) "Zovirax burnt my skin around the cold sore leaving a red mark 2-3 times larger than my cold sore! It also caused this skin to peel. My cold sore is essentially gone after approximately 6 days but now I am left with a very obvious and huge red mark. If you use this cream and it stings or burns at all when you apply it I would suggest stopping usage straight away. It says that this may be a “mild” symptom of using the cream. I wish I had stopped using it as soon as I felt the stinging sensation."

• NotSp...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• July 17, 2017

Zovirax Cream (acyclovir) "Zovirax cream has 50mg of acyclovir in it -doesn't it? It was in the contents ingredients information list. Zovirax cream is a MIRACLE CURE!! Coldsores -dab it on asap a small tiny bit -Bumps on skin like welts or hives (Shingles?) +very painful +scary looking like chicken pox -connect the bumps/dots. It's stress+anxiety like someone else said...lack of sleep+you haven't been eating since the ?other? day+working extra daysTHENnights+ little catnap sleeps+ you find junk sugar loaded snacks +even the fruit+applesauce cups+granola =huge sugar/salt +sugar drinks+ creamy sugar coffee day+night to just get through those sudden double shifts =Reactions- cold sores +hive like sores+ACNE! Omg! ZOVIRAX by prescription will save YOUR day!!! : )"

• Anon
• February 22, 2018

Zovirax Cream (acyclovir) "Zovirax works great on cold sores. I use at first sign for a few days and it doesn't even blister. If I get a blister it doesn't get big and dries up 2 to 3 days. Abreva never worked for me. This stuff is great"

• Sam
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 13, 2021

Zovirax Cream (acyclovir) "Best cold sore cream I've used. Suffer from cold sores frequently and no other treatment has really worked. This, however, eases pain and stops spread and growth in just a few days. As well as this it's so cheap only a few quid. Would highly recommend it."

• Danny...
• May 20, 2016

Zovirax Cream (acyclovir) "I'm from the uk and Zovirax cost £6 which is probably $9 for a small little tube, it's rubbish, felt tingle so went straight to the shop and bought Zovirax, been applying it every 4-5 hours, 3 days later and the cold sore has blistered at side of my mouth, would of been better using tcp, it burns a bit but it does the job"

• Endyia...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• June 13, 2015

"I all ways get cold sores. I tried everything and nothing worked better then this. And the cold sores don't come as frequent after using zovirax. Gone within 2-3days if you catch while it's tingling it wouldn't show at all"