In case you are thinking about herpes and pregnancy, the greatest possible danger is that the little one will also contract it.
However, you should know that this happens very rarely, about 1,500 times a year, but it is a serious condition, so it is better to avoid it.
Information about having herpes while being pregnant
It is possible that you will pass the infection to the baby if you are contagious at the moment of birth. The chances of infecting the baby are relatively high if this is the first time that you get affected. When having recurrent infection, the chances of infecting the baby are a lot smaller.
If women have herpes while being pregnant and they have recurrent outbreaks, the virus becomes reactivated if there is a outbreak.
Women getting herpes for the first time during their pregnancy could also pass it to the baby through the placenta. In this case, the virus could cause birth defects to the baby.
Prevention
The women who know that they have to be thinking about herpes and pregnancy already have a huge advantage.
This is because the studies suggest that those babies are at the highest risks whose mothers don’t know that they have been affected by the herpes virus.
One reason for this fact regarding having herpes while being pregnant is that there are so many infected people. On the other hand, it is also caused by women and doctors not taking measures for prevention because they don’t think that neonatal herpes is a real threat.
The doctors and the mother may not think that they have to consider herpes and pregnancy and this is why they don’t notice the lesions at birth or the mild signs of outbreaks. If the condition is known by both the mother and the doctor, the mother is examined upon birth with a strong light.
No matter how primitive this may sound, when it comes to having herpes while being pregnant this is the best way to find the lesions. To make sure that the diagnosis is accurate, the doctor could also take a viral culture. When the doctors know that their patient is affected, they monitor her and the baby more closely.
It is interesting to know regarding herpes and pregnancy that the women who have some knowledge regarding the infection and the dangers may be better at recognizing the lesions than their doctors.
They also have the possibility to recognize the prodromal symptoms.
Women can help their doctors if they have herpes while being pregnant if they show their doctors the site where they usually have the lesions.
It is true that in some cases it is difficult for women to discuss topics of this kind in the delivery room with people that they have never seen before, but still they have to do it.
In situations of this kind, you must talk about herpes and pregnancy. You have to forget about the stigma and give the most information you can to your doctor, to make sure that the baby will be alright.
Lesions during childbirth
If the patient is affected by herpes while being pregnant and she has lesions at that moment, the best course of action might be to have a C section. This way the baby will not get in contact with the virus. However, the chances for this to happen are quite small.
When it comes to herpes and pregnancy there are many patients who see that the number of outbreaks increases as the pregnancy progresses because the immune system is suppressed so that it won’t reject the baby.
