Herpes simplex virus (type 1)?

Can this be hereditery or is it just contagious?
I've recently discovered that cold sores are to do with someone having herpes and my partner gets cold sores, so I was just wondering.

HSV 1 is very common (about 70-80% of the adult population are HSV1 positive, though some do not get outbreaks) HSV1 is usually found "above the waist" though there can be exceptions. HSV2 is the sexually transmitted variety and is less common by quite a bit. Both of these viruses live in the nerve junction and can be activated by many things - like a cold (hence the name) or exposure to sun, feeling run down, finals week, etc. HSV2 is usually significantly more painful when it first presents and then when it subsequentially presents again compared to HSV1. Herpes is transmitted by skin to skin contact. Either of the varieties could infect the genitals or the mouth but for the most part each respective (HSV1 or HSV2) virus thrives best in its "normal" environment.

Condoms are helpful if the lesion provides a barrier to the place where a lesion exists. There are oral anti-viral medications that reduce the severity and length of time the lesions are present and if taken all of the time can reduced the likelihood of passing herpes to a partner (but is not a 100% certainy).

In your case your partner almost certainly has HSV1 and could pass the virus to you by kissing. Make sure your partner is aware of this possible transmission. He/she can tell when there is a little tingle before a lesion breaks out...kissing is out for the next week or so. Abreva and other over the counter medications are helpful especially if the lesion is caught early, before it has a chance to break out and then needs to heal. Again even with being careful if you are one of the 20% who are not infected with HSV1 you might get infection - sometimes it is impossible to know if the virus is shedding or not.

Thank you so much for validating my answer to a previous question that was asked a few weeks ago. I received very unpleasent responses to my answer and I gave them reference. Report It

Herpes simplex virus is infectious and can be transmitted from one person to another. So it can be transmitted by sharing drinks or kissing or even oral sex if a sexual partner has/had genital herpes. (This is common and is the reason that is harder to know whether a herpes lesion is type 1 (usually oral) or type 2 (usually genital)).

By the same token, herpes simplex is very common so if your mother had it and tasted food for you as an infant and then put the utensil in your mouth, you could have had been exposed and ultimately developed cold sores.

It is impossible to know who gave you the virus. You could only know that you have it or not.

this type is the oral,as type 2 is the genital.
no, it is not hereditary,but in the neurological form of this disease the virus may be latent in the neuoral ganglia in the spinal cord, and might get reactivated in some cases.
your partner should go to a doctor to get the proper therapy and you should be treated also.
good luck.