herpes news

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Spreading Herpes Unintentionally

New research has been pointing fingers at the female population. It seems that the research suggests that female youngsters may be the ones promoting the spread of the herpes virus. Kenneth Fife of Indiana University School of Medicine states that there is a chunk of the female population that has never been tested for herpes, has not shown a single sign of having herpes, but is still shedding the virus every now and then.

Kenneth Fife

Kenneth Fife

Supposedly, at least one out of five youngsters and adults has herpes. Often, it is genital herpes that is caused by herpes simplex virus 2. Kenneth and his team members studied exactly 127 women, all of whom were 14 to 18 years old. After 4-6 years of observation, it was found that only 3 women had been diagnosed with type 2 herpes. The rest of the women never went in for a test, and yet, about two thirds of the 127 were shedding the virus. Even more surprisingly, a group of these women who had been tested negative at first, were tested positive the second time round.

Kenneth expressed his worry, since most of these women never showed signs of genital herpes. Even though some women may have had the likes of vaginal discharges, they were not out of the ordinary; other factors could cause such discharges to take place.

There was another study carried out where patients who have had genital herpes for over a decade, still showing virus shedding for 14% of the year.

The studies shed light on the fact that hormonal contraception such as the pill could lower the defences of a woman’s body, making her susceptible to genital herpes. A group of researchers from Albert Einstein School of Medicine studied some women aged from 18 to 25. They were all generally healthy, showing antimicrobial properties in their vaginal fluid. However, some women who were on contraception showed lesser antimicrobial properties in comparison. The researchers did say however, that this study was small, which is why a larger research needs to be carried out to confirm their findings.

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Herpes: The Silent Assailant

If you are about to have sexual intercourse with a person, there is at least a 10% chance of you contracting herpes from them. Quite a high possibility, is it not? We thought so too!

This percentage mentioned was discovered from a study where swabs were taken from the genitals of about 500 individuals infected with the herpes simplex virus. What is shocking is that over 15% of this population assumed that they were clean, until they went through this blood test for herpes.

Not known to many people, at least 16% of the American population has the herpes simplex type 2 virus. Sadly, from 75-90% of this group of people do not even know that they have the virus, merely since they did not see symptoms or just because they did not think much of it. These unsuspecting carriers were found to have been shedding virus on at least 3 days out of the whole month, without even having an inkling about it.

A researcher from the University of Washington called Anna Wald mentioned that the biggest concern about these unwary carriers was that they make sexual intercourse with other individuals risky. Anna and her colleagues unearthed a few facts from their study:

  • Even if they have genital skin that has no sores and blisters, infected men could still shed the virus.
  • Individuals with herpes that do not show symptoms shed the virus as much as those who show symptoms.
  • Women shed virus as often as men.
  • Although there is no proof that this is absolutely correct, it seems as if white people shed virus more often that non-white people
  • Individuals with herpes that do not show symptoms shed virus only about half as often as those who show signs and symptoms.
  • It is almost impossible to calculate how much of the herpes virus is required to bring about an outbreak.
  • If a person has both herpes simplex virus 1 and 2, having virus 1 does not determine how often the person will shed type 2 virus.
  • The key is to keep check of the number of times the patient sheds the herpes virus in 12 months. If it is less than 8 times, they are shedding virus 19% of the entire year. If it is more than 8 times, these individuals are shedding virus 31% of the entire year.

Since herpes is a disease that is quite tough to detect in some people’s situation, it is best to go in for a check-up and get a herpes blood test done. And if you have not got around to do that, but have been feeling as if you may be infected, you could opt for one of the following options to stay safe:

  • Daily intake of valacyclovir, which is a drug for herpes.
  • Having a discussion about having herpes with your partner(s).
  • Making sure to use condoms whenever you get involved in some sexual act.