Repost of earlier thread about herpes

Factual Questions
1

A poster recently started a thread in GQ about having acquired oral herpes from another person’s genitals. The OP unwisely also posted some possible identifying information about his/her sex partner, so the thread was removed. But others had posted comments and questions, so I’d like to respond to those here:

[[Q: All kidding aside, it’ll go away if you get it treated. Just to satisfy my own curiosity, can Herpes Simplex II (aka Genital Herpes) be transferred orally? I didn’t think it could be.]]

A: We’ve discussed herpes a number of times in this forum. Let me review a few facts about this virus here.

First things first.

  1. PLEASE DO NOT POST IDENTIFYING INFORMATION OF ANY KIND about someone who may have infected you with something. In fact it’s probably a very good idea to NOT post identifying information about anybody on an internet message board without their permission. Don’t even tell us if Brian borrowed a book from you and didn’t return it. This is pretty much common sense, I think.

  2. Type 1 herpes is oral herpes (usually found on the lip) and Type II herpes is genital herpes. Either type can be spread to the other area, but if you acquire genital herpes in your mouth or throat, it is less likely to recur there. Type I prefers to live around the mouth and Type II prefers the genital area. They might travel to the other place, but they often don’t stick around forever.

Condoms do not completely protect the partner from getting this virus, as it can sometimes be shedding from areas close to, but not right on, the genitals. The virus can be spread when the person has no active sores and does not know they are shedding virus. Probably about a third to a half of the people who have herpes don’t have outbreaks or don’t recognise that they do. They may spread it without even knowing it. It is probably very rare for a person to purposely give another person herpes. It is a very old virus that is very prevalent in the human species. A large percentage of adults carry either type I or type II herpesvirus. The virus is more annoying than dangerous (except in the rare cases where it is spread to a newborn baby… tell your obstetrician if you know you have the virus. If there is an active outbreak during labor, they may choose to do a C-section to keep the baby from coming in contact with the virus. Again, it is rare that babies catch herpes from their mothers). Herpes does NOT cause cancer. (Human papillomavirus - HPV - does cause cervical cancer, but it’s an unrelated virus - also transmitted sexually.)

The only way to completely protect yourself from acquiring herpes is to never have sex with anybody. Condoms may help. It may help to avoid intercourse while your partner is having an outbreak. Neither of these precautions offer complete protection, though.

There is no cure for Herpes but there are medications - antivirals like acyclovir and famvir - which can suppress outbreaks. With time outbreaks are usually less common and - again - you are less likely to continue to have outbreaks in the oral region if you’ve been infected with genital herpes there.

For more information, go to: http://www.ashastd.org/stdfaqs/herpes.html
Jill

2

“If there is an active outbreak during labor, they may choose to do a C-section to keep the baby from coming in contact with the virus.”

How likely “they” are to choose to do a C-section depends on where you are. According to Anna Wald writing in Clinical Evidence Issue 6 (2001):
“Countries vary in their approach to obstetric management of women with recurrent genital herpes at term. In the USA and the UK, these women are advised to undergo abdominal delivery, with its attendant risks to the mother.” “In the Netherlands, women with recurrent genital herpes at delivery have been allowed vaginal birth since 1987. This policy has not resulted in an increase in neonatal herpes: 26 cases from 1981––1986 and 19 cases from 1987––1991.”

The thing is that most cases of transmission to newborns are from women who have only recently been infected and who do not know they have herpes. Women who know they have herpes and have a recurrence at term are at much lower risk of transmitting herpes to their infant.

Wald cites “A study pooling data from different studies [that] estimated that, for every two neonatal deaths from herpes simplex virus infection prevented by abdominal delivery, one maternal death may be caused.” (Randolph A, Washington A, Prober C. Cesarean delivery for women presenting with genital herpes lesions. JAMA 1993;270:77–82.)