How is Genital Herpes Spread?

Genital herpes can spread through body fluids or skin-to-skin contact during vaginal, oral or anal sex with someone who already has the virus. You can become infected even if your sexual partner doesn’t have visible symptoms.

Herpes can also spread through contact with a partner’s herpes blister or saliva (if your partner has oral herpes).

You can’t get herpes from toilet seats, swimming pools or other objects that you touch.

Symptoms

Symptom cans show up two to 12 days after exposure and may include:

• Fever.
• Body aches
• Small, painful blisters.
• Itching or burning under the skin before blisters appear.

Blisters last one to three weeks. They will go away, but you still have herpes and blisters can come back. Another outbreak can appear weeks or months after the first, but it’s almost always less severe and shorter than the first outbreak.

Long-Term Effects

Genital herpes can cause recurrent, painful genital sores in many adults. Herpes infection can be severe in people with weak immune systems. Regardless of the severity of symptoms, genital herpes frequently causes psychological distress in people who know they’re infected.

Genital HSV can cause potentially fatal infections in babies. It’s important that women avoid contracting herpes during pregnancy because a first episode during pregnancy causes a greater risk of transmission to the baby.

If a woman has active genital herpes at delivery, a cesarean delivery is usually performed. Fortunately, infection of a baby from a mother with herpes infection is rare.

Herpes may play a role in the spread of HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. Herpes can make people more susceptible to HIV infection and it can make HIV-infected individuals more infectious.

Prevention

Genital herpes is common. In the United States, about one in six people age 14 to 49 have genital herpes.

The best way to avoid transmission of sexually transmitted diseases, including genital herpes, is to abstain from sexual contact or to be in a long-term mutually monogamous relationship with a partner who is known to be uninfected.

Genital ulcer diseases can occur in both male and female genital areas that are covered or protected by a latex condom, as well as in areas not covered. Correct and consistent use of latex condoms can reduce the risk of genital herpes only when the infected area or site of potential exposure is protected.

Since a condom may not cover all infected areas, even correct and consistent use of latex condoms can’t guarantee protection from genital herpes.

Persons with herpes should abstain from sexual activity with uninfected partners when lesions or other herpes symptoms are present. Remember, even if a person doesn’t have any symptoms, they can still infect sex partners.

Sex partners of infected persons should be advised that they may become infected. Sex partners can get tested to determine if they’re infected with HSV. A positive HSV-2 blood test most likely indicates a genital herpes infection.

Treatment

There is no cure for herpes, but antiviral medications can shorten and prevent outbreaks.

Last Reviewed: September 2019