[hur-peez] 
| 1. | any of several diseases caused by herpesvirus, characterized by eruption of blisters on the skin or mucous membranes. Compare chickenpox, genital herpes, oral herpes, shingles. |
| 2. | herpesvirus. |
| her·pes (hûr'pēz) n. Any of several viral diseases causing the eruption of small blisterlike vesicles on the skin or mucous membranes, especially herpes simplex or herpes zoster. [Middle English, from Latin herpēs, from Greek, from herpein, to creep.] her·pet'ic (hər-pět'ĭk) adj. |
A group of related diseases and the viruses that cause them. These diseases are marked by the development of blisterlike sores on the skin or mucous membranes of the body. The herpes virus may invade the mouth region, producing fever blisters or cold sores, or may cause a sexually transmitted disease in which the painful sores appear on the genitals. Chicken pox is another disease caused by a herpes virus.
Note: After an infection, the virus remains dormant and may return at a later time. Shingles, for example, is a recurrence of the chicken pox virus, and outbreaks of genital herpes recur over time.
herpes her·pes (hûr'pēz)
n.
Any of several viral diseases causing the eruption of small blisterlike vesicles on the skin or mucous membranes, especially herpes simplex or herpes zoster.
