Most women who have genital herpes give birth to healthy babies.
Genital herpes is an infection of the area in or around the vagina,
the lips around the opening of the vagina and anus. Herpes may also cause sores on the mouth and nose called cold sores, or on the eyes, fingers and hands.
It is caused by the herpes simplex virus. There are two types of the virus known as herpes simplex 1 and Herpes simplex 2.
When you catch genital herpes for the first time you may notice painful sores or watery blisters in your pubic hair, vagina, vulva or anus. You may have pain when you urinate. You may feel as though you have fever, feel unwell and very tired. Genital herpes sores may appear in or around the vagina, the vulva or the anus. Once you catch herpes, the virus stays in your body and can become active repeatedly in the future. A warning sign of an outbreak may be a tingling feeling in the area that is affected.
If you have had herpes before and it is active again when you go into labour, the risk to your baby is still very low.
If you catch genital herpes for the first time late in your pregnancy your immune system has no time to develop and pass on your immunity. This means that there is a higher risk of passing herpes on to your baby. There is most risk of this happening if the baby is born four hours or more after your waters break.
If a mother passes herpes to her baby at birth the infection is
neonatal herpes. Although it can be very serious, can cause infections in the baby’s skin, eyes or mouth and may damage the brain or
other organs neonatal herpes is rare and treatment for affected babies is available. Treatment with medication may help prevent or reduce lasting damage to the baby’s health.
Your unborn baby is usually protected by your own immunity. This means that you pass on to your baby a resistance to any infections you have had before, or with which you have been in contact. Babies usually keep this protection for up to three months after they are born.
If your partner has herpes but you do not, or if you are unsure whether you have it, you may reduce the risk of getting it yourself by avoiding sexual intercourse or oral sex whenever he has an outbreak. You may want to consider using condoms throughout your pregnancy.
If you have caught genital herpes for the first time while you are pregnant, you should also be checked for other sexually transmitted infections.
If you get genital herpes for the first time while you are pregnant, , you may be offered a five-day course of tablets that contain an antiviral drug called acyclovir. Acyclovir may reduce the length and severity of your symptoms.
If you first get genital herpes towards the end of your pregnancy, you should be offered acyclovir every day for the last four weeks of your pregnancy. This may stop the herpes from returning when you are due to give birth.
There is no evidence of any risks to your unborn baby if you take acyclovir while you are pregnant. Most women experience no side effects.
If you get a first infection of genital herpes in the first six months of your pregnancy, you do not need to have a caesarean.
If you get genital herpes for the first time in the last six weeks of your pregnancy, your doctors will offer you a planned caesarean section.
If you develop genital herpes for the first time as you are about to give birth or go into labour, your doctors will recommend that you have a caesarean section. This reduces the risk of passing on herpes to your baby during the birth.
If you first caught herpes before you got pregnant and you have an outbreak around the time of your labour, you may not need to have a caesarean. The risks for you in having a caesarean may be greater than the risk of your baby being infected. Your doctors should discuss this with you.
No treatment can be guaranteed to work all the time for everyone. Avoid skin-to-skin contact between your newborn baby and anyone with an active herpes infection including a cold sore on the mouth or a herpes infection at the edge of a fingernail.
