Every sport has its own problems. Whether you’re talking about knee injuries in football or repetitive concussions in boxing, a dark secret exists.
In wrestling it’s no different, but the entity isn’t a broken bone, torn ligament or head injury. Instead, skin infections plague this sport and Herpes Gladiatorum has been called its own little dark secret. Ringworm (T. tonsurans) is a fungal infection that 85 percent of all wrestlers will get each year. Consequences are minimal and treatment is long.
Contrast this with Herpes Gladiatorum (HG), caused by Herpes Simplex Type-1, the same virus that causes cold sores. Once you get it, you’ve got it for life. Estimations are that 33 percent of all teenagers from 13-18 years of age have this virus. Yet, only three percent know it.
With cold sores, recurrent vesicle formation is the rule, not the exception. It usually develops on the lip or surrounding nose or face. It usually lasts three to seven days and goes away on its own only to reoccur at sometime in the future.
Spread by direct contact with an infected individual, usually from kissing a significant other, it becomes more of a nuisance. Contrast this with HG: Estimation that 20-40 percent of Division I wrestlers knowingly get recurrent infections which usually involve areas on the face and around the eye.

• The rest of this story appears in the Annual College Preview issue of Wrestling International Newsmagazine. To subscribe to Wrestling International Magazine, call 1-888-305-0606 or by e-mail at info@win-magazine.com. W.I.N. publishes 12 times per year for an annual second class mailing rate of $29.95. The first-class subscription rate is $47.95.