TMZ reported a Coachella fest herpes 'spike.' But valley officials haven't seen it

While performers crooned about sex at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, some attendees were reportedly searching for treatment for herpes.

HerpAlert, a health app that provides diagnosis and treatment of genital herpes and cold sores, has received 1,105 requests for electronic consultations since the music festival kicked off April 12, according to Dr. Lynn Marie Morski, the company's medical director. The requests came from people in the Coachella Valley, as well as Los Angeles, Orange County and San Diego, she said.

Morski could not say how many of those consultations led to positive herpes diagnoses, explaining that some people got treatment for cold sores or genital herpes, while other inquiries were for preventative treatment. Other people didn't qualify for medication. Also, doctors conduct the analyses over an app — people upload photos of their symptoms and doctors assess the images and prescribe treatment when necessary — so they don't examine patients in person or conduct a blood test to confirm the diagnosis.

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TMZ first reported the HerpAlert data, saying there has been a "huge spike" in the number of people seeking herpes treatment since the festival started. But Coachella Valley health providers, such as Planned Parenthood and Eisenhower Health, said they have not seen an increase in herpes consultations or positive diagnoses at their area health clinics.

HerpAlert received about 250 requests for electronic consultations — concentrated in the Coachella Valley — during the first two days of the festival, Morski said. In California, she added, the company typically gets 12 requests a day.

Morski said the festival experience is "very conducive" to the transmission of oral and genital herpes. The stress of being in the sun, getting minimal sleep and eating poorly can trigger the virus, she said. People are at risk of contracting the virus, she added, if they share beverages or engage in sexual activity. 

"That many people, in that close quarters, for that long is going to lead to increased likelihood of anything transmittable," Morski said.

Planned Parenthood, meanwhile, has not seen a "measurable increase" in herpes consultations or diagnoses at either of its health clinics in the Coachella Valley, said Cita Walsh, spokeswoman for Planned Parenthood of the Pacific Southwest. The organization's clinic in the city of Coachella is less than 5 miles from the festival grounds. It also operates a health center in Rancho Mirage, about 15 miles from the festival.

Walsh questioned whether people truly contracted herpes while attending the first two days of the music festival, since herpes symptoms typically occur between two and 20 days after infection.

"They didn't go to Coachella and get herpes," Walsh said. Noting that California is reporting record-high levels of chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis, she said it's more likely "they arrived at Coachella with herpes or other (sexually transmitted infections)."

Eisenhower Health has not seen any increase in herpes consultations or diagnoses at its sexual health clinic in Palm Springs, emergency department in Rancho Mirage, or its urgent cares in those two cities and La Quinta, according to spokeswoman Lee Rice.

Desert AIDS Project, which also offers STD testing, did not respond to requests for comment.

Morski said she was not surprised that local health care providers didn't see a similar increase in herpes-related visits. The HerpAlert technology, she said, allowed people to get a consultation without leaving the festival grounds.

HerpAlert is owned by Derma Corporation, according to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office; its trademark was filed in Feb. 2017 and registered in Sept. 2018. The corporation is located in Walnut, about 25 miles east of Los Angeles. 

Herpes is caused by two viruses. Herpes simplex virus type 1, or HSV-1, and herpes simplex virus type 2, or HSV-2, can both lead to sores in the genital area, lips, mouth and throat.

In the United States, more than one out of every six people ages 14 to 49 years old have genital herpes, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

People acquire genital herpes by having sex with someone who has the virus, the CDC says. People can get herpes by coming in contact with the virus through a sore; saliva or genital secretions, if a partner is having an oral or genital outbreak; or skin in the oral or genital area, if a partner is having an outbreak.

People can also get herpes from a sex partner who does not have a visible sore or who may not know he or she is infected. It's also possible to get genital herpes through oral sex with a partner who has oral herpes.

The most common symptom of genital herpes is a group of itchy or painful blisters in the genital region or on the inside of the thighs, according to Planned Parenthood. The blisters break and turn into sores.

There is no cure for herpes, but there are medicines that can prevent or shorten outbreaks, the CDC says.

Rebecca Plevin is a reporter for the Desert Sun. Desert Sun reporter Shane Newell contributed to this story.