Beware of herpes in pregnancy

• April 26, 2024

While most women with Genital herpes have healthy babies, it may be the case that some mothers transmit the virus to the baby during labor and delivery.

According to the American Academy of Family Physicians , those babies born to mothers with an active infection by genital herpes, during or near the time of delivery, can become infected and suffer brain damage, blindness or even death .

Therefore, it is very important that pregnant women recognize the symptoms of genital herpes and seek immediate medical treatment, if they believe they are infected. They should inform their doctor if they have had herpes before, so that together they can take the necessary measures to protect the baby against the virus.

What do you do if you have herpes and you become pregnant?

If you have genital herpes and are considering pregnancy or if you are pregnant, notify your doctor immediately because he is the only one who can prescribe antiviral drugs so that you are less likely to suffer an outbreak of herpes when the baby is born.

If you have an outbreak of genital herpes at the time of delivery, it is most likely that your doctor advises you to have the baby by cesarean section. In this way, the risk is lower .

What happens if you get herpes during pregnancy

If a woman becomes infected with herpes during the first or second trimester of pregnancy, it is very unlikely that the baby will catch it. This is because the maternal organism produces the antibodies necessary to eliminate the virus and that are transferred to the baby providing protection.

Women who have been infected with herpes before becoming pregnant will also produce these antibodies during their pregnancy. However, and despite the fact that his body will transfer the antibodies to the baby If the mother-to-be was infected with the HSV-1 virus, those antibodies will not offer too much protection to the child to fight herpes.

Women who are infected during the third trimester and who experience their first episode of genital herpes development in the later stages of pregnancy, are at the highest risk of complications.

This is because few, or perhaps none of the antibodies produced by your body, have had enough time to pass from your body to the baby's before it is time to be born.

The greatest danger related to the transmission of herpes to a girl or boy occurs when the mother experiences a herpes outbreak at the time of delivery as the baby will have to go through the delivery canal and will come into contact with herpes sores . Nearly half of newborn babies are vaginally, and under these circumstances, will be infected with the HSV virus.

The specialists indicate that, of course, it is very important to avoid contracting herpes during pregnancy. If your partner has the virus and you do not, be sure to use condoms during intercourse at all times or not have sex. Your partner could transmit the infection, even if he does not have an outbreak at that time . If you have visible ulcers, avoid having sex completely until the ulcers have healed.

Video Medicine: Beware Of Herpes! Click Here To Know Its Symptoms (April 2024).