Genital Herpes and Pregnancy

Learn about the risks of having Herpes during Pregnancy

Getting herpes during or after pregnancy has always been a major concern among expecting parents especially the women. When a women is diagnosed with herpes virus, she often gets concerned about transmitting the herpes virus to her unborn child during pregnancy.

Contrary to popular belief, herpes virus does not prevent or interfere with the process of getting pregnant nor with having a vaginal delivery and neither with having healthy babies.  Vast majority of women having genital herpes go through normal pregnancies and deliver healthy babies. However, herpes does need some special attention and management from pregnant women.

Transmission of herpes during pregnancy is possible but under specific circumstances. Giving birth at a time when there are no symptoms or signs of herpes infection, you can expect to have a normal baby through a vaginal birth. Risk of infection rises if herpes symptoms are present in the birth canal during the time of delivery.

Women who get genital herpes infection before conceiving are found to be at a lower risk of transmitting the virus to their babies. Chances of passing the infection to the babies increase if women get the virus during the last three months of pregnancy.

The risk of transmitting the virus is 30% to 50% greater in women who have never had an herpes infection but get it during pregnancy. The reason behind this is magnitude of virus present in a first episode and high rate of viral shedding during the first six months following contraction of infection.

genital herpes pregnancy

This phenomenon is due to the fact that women who have herpes infection well before conception pass protective antibodies to their fetuses during  the pregnancy period through the placenta in the womb. These antibodies guard the baby from any herpes infection in the womb and even from  herpes virus present in the birth canal. But if a women gets infected during the later stages of pregnancy her body has no time to develop antibodies that can be passed to her growing fetus.

In the scenario of an infant contracting an herpes infection, it can be life threatening. The signs tend to show up within 7 to 14 days of birth. The possible and potential risks include skin sores, lack of appetite, fever, brain infection, nervous system damage, recurrent seizures, mental retardation, prolonged hospitalization and possible death due to severe complications.

Early treatment with proper anti viral medications may help in preventing or reducing any irreversible damage to the newborn.

Commonly a caesarean section delivery is recommend to women if any signs or symptoms of herpes are found by visual examination at the onset of labor or she has had any genital herpes outbreak during the final stages of pregnancy, to avoid any risks. Caesarean section delivery is done to bypass the baby coming into any type of direct contact with the virus overload very likely to be present in the birth canal.

Due to the risks involved it becomes highly recommendable to avoid any exposure to herpes virus during pregnancy. Especially in the final three months as it is the most susceptible period of developing first episode symptoms.

Treatment with antiviral drugs is often recommended for women with primary infection at any time during pregnancy because of the risk reactivation is higher. Anti viral such as Acyclovir and Valtrex are very safe during pregnancy.  These medicines have shown to reduce viral shedding by more then 50%.

pregnancy genital herpes


Here are some quick tips to take care of:

• Avoid contracting herpes during pregnancy.
• If your partner or husband shows any signs or symptoms of genital herpes, avoid having any direct skin to skin contact.
• Practice abstinence.
• Use condoms during any sexual activity throughout the the term even when there are no visible genital herpes lesions to bring the risk to the minimum.
• Talk with your doctor or health care provider if you have even a mild sign of herpes during pregnancy.
• Get yourself examined on the onset of labor for herpes symptoms.
• Take suppressive anti viral drugs to significantly reduce the risk of transmission of herpes during pregnancy.
• After birth, infection can be transmitted from a kiss by someone with a cold sore, so take adequate care.