Herpes outbreak? 33 weeks pregnant

[Teapot32]

Hi all nc for obvious reasons.

went to a&e today with sever itching down below. Apparently it’s red and inflamed and there is “leasions” (unsure of spelling). I’m to pregnant to see what’s going on. Lips on face are also abit swollen and have white textured patches on them. No pain in face, or below when weeing etc. just the itch,

I thought it was dermatitis- hospital think it could be herpes and have referred me to sexual health clinic. Never had this before and hoping it isn’t.

been with dh for 4 years and haven’t been unfaithful. Have no reason to suspect he has either. I know it can lay dormant for a long time but it’s been 6 years since I had slept with anyone who wasn’t dh. How do I approach this with him? I’m really not knowledgeable on the subject so can anyone offer any advice please?

Feeling irritated and abit hopeless.

thank you 💜

I hope that it’s not herpes because if it is I’m so sorry it’s not looking good

You can also catch it from oral sex with someone with a cold sore. Or accidentally transfer it from your lips if you get cold sores.
If either you or your husband have ever had a cold sore, that means you carry the virus and could have passed it on/transfered it to a new site.
Cold sores are usually Herpes simplex virus type 1 and genital herpes is usually Herpes simplex virus type 2 but in recent decades as oral sex has become a very common part of many couples sex lives medics are seeing more cases of face to genital transfer and lots of genital cases now turn out to be type 1.
Talk to your midwife about how this might affect your birth plan. They’ll want to avoid you transferring a herpes infection to your newborn during birth so depending on how things develop, they may recommend a c-section over vaginal delivery.

Hi OP. I had the same possible diagnosis, at roughly the same stage in my pregnancy. Test turned out to be negative but even if it is they can manage it. Have you been tested? I remember the wait for the test results was over a BH weekend and was totally agonising.

I hit the roof when the registrar at the hospital examined me and just casually suggested herpes. The messaging was managed very poorly. But it was all a storm in a teacup: just very very severe thrush. Hope you have the same outcome. Try not to stress too much; they do have to be more risk averse, rather than less, particularly when you’re pregnant as it’s your and another very vulnerable person they’re looking after.

Best wishes to you.

If it is herpes you'll be prescribed acyclovir or similar. I had an outbreak during late pregnancy and that was my experience. Can't advise on how to broach with your Dh though

Where did you get your doctors degree from? Take a break magazine?

OP please try not to worry. There is a very very low risk of it transferring to the baby and if you’ve been diagnosed then your medical team will be prepared. It may not even be herpes it could be thrush which is common in pregnancy. Please try not to worry. You and the baby will be fine x

You either get genital herpes or cold sores, but not both, so if your lips are affected too it may be something else, perhaps candida which causes thrush?

Great post.

Not true.

NHS website suggests they’ll prescribe antivirals for you if it is herpes to help mitigate the risk of your baby catching the virus too.
If you’ve already had herpes outbreaks before (including cold sores) then the risks are lower because you’ll already have antibodies.
The drs have seen this before and they have treatment plans to follow.

Another one with a Take a Break Doctor Certificate. 🙄

This is incorrect.

Read this instead:

Tell him you're being sent for more tests and let him know whatever the results are when you get them.

Herpes can lie dormant in the body for a long time and can also be asymptomatic but not dormant. If it is herpes, I wouldn't immediately jump to the conclusion of any unfaithfulness. Your husband will also need to be tested if it is.

They think that a carrier of Herpes Simplex type 1 (usually the one that causes cold sores) might give you some immunity if you come into contact with HSV-2 (usual cause of genital herpes). But you can have either type in either location and you can also be unlucky and catch both types.

Completely agree with this.

There is a lot of misinformation and scaremongering on this post. It's perfectly possible to have herpes virus in the body for many years before ever showing symptoms. Symptoms might actually be more likely in pregnancy as the immune system is lower during pregnancy, so the virus which is usually being managed perfectly well by the immune system gets a chance to show itself.

The Herpes Virus Association have a very good website so would suggest you (and DH) having a look at that if you would like some good information.

However it may not be herpes, so although it's easier said than done, try not to jump to conclusions before you get a firm diagnosis and know what you are dealing with.

Have you got an appointment booked already with sexual health?

Thank you all - I have never had cold sores neither has dh.

il do some research of the links added. There is a walk-in clinic at 9am tomorrow which I’m going to go to. The hospital did a swab also but said itl take 3 days roughly to get results. Assuming itl be the same tomorrow?

it feels so scary, more so being pregnant and not understanding the virus but thank you for all the helpful comments. It’s made me feel less scared. Il talk to dh tonight and say they want to rule it out just in case and take the convo from there. 💜

if I do have it - it’s something you can’t get rid of isn’t it? Does this mean I would have flare ups sporadically for the rest of my life? Hospital made it sound quite scary although obviously aware many people have it and manage just fine

❤️

Some people have flare ups for the rest of their lives and some people never have another outbreak. For most people, the first outbreak can be a bit miserable but if they have consequent outbreaks they tend to get milder over time. There are antiviral meds doctors prescribe to people whose symptoms are more than just annoying. It’s really bad luck getting your first outbreak while pregnant. I would give your midwife a call tomorrow to let them know you’re being investigated for symptoms that could be genital herpes and that the lab should have results in 3 days. As far as I know (patient not dr), antivirals work best the sooner they’re taken so I’d want an opinion from the midwives or gynecologists about whether they wait the 3 days to confirm/rule out or whether they assume it could be and treat anyway.

Ive had it for about 12 years now, i had a flare up in end of pregnancy and i just took the tablets and everything was fine.
If it is herpes then yes you will have it for the rest of your life but its not as bad as it sounds... i have tablets sitting there ready and as soon as i feel a flare up coming i take them and its gone in a few days. I can go a year or so without them showing.

I was terrified when i found out but i don't ever really think about it now.
Try not to worry, easier said than done i know!

Oh don’t be so bloody silly.

I work in sexual health OP, if it is herpes, it can indeed lay dormant for a long time before you become symptomatic, you can also get the facial variety on your genitals if you’ve received oral sex from someone who carries it. It’s unusual to get them on your face and genitals at the same time but it can indeed happen. The redness and soreness around your genitals might also be thrush, which is common in pregnancy.

If it is herpes, you can still have a vaginal delivery if you want one, you would probably need to consider suppressive antiviral medication for the last 4-5 weeks of your pregnancy to reduce the risk to baby.

You might have flare ups occasionally throughout your life or this may be the only outbreak you’ll ever get. Try not to worry, I know it’s hard when you get silly comments like the one above. I diagnosed a pregnant lady with herpes yesterday, as long as your midwife knows then there can be plans put in place to keep baby safe ❤️

OP’s husband can’t be tested if he doesn’t have symptoms, we don’t do herpes serology because 80% of the population would have a positive result! I agree though that it’s unlikely anyone’s been unfaithful. I explain it to pregnant women who come to see me with symptoms of herpes that their immune system has gone a bit nuts creating a whole new human and has ‘forgotten’ to suppress things like herpes, which it’s been managing in the background until pregnancy came along.

There’s such a huuuge stigma around herpes, I wish there wasn’t. I hear so many people say that they feel ‘dirty’ but it truly is just a coldsore. I’ve never personally had any symptoms but the chances of me having it are higher than not. The one thing I say to any patient with herpes symptoms is that if there are ten of us in the building, eight of us will probably carry at least one type.

Yes you're right of course. Brain on autopilot tonight.

Mine too it’s been a difficult day!

Thank you for this. There has been no oral sex either way (I don’t like it on me) and it has been infrequent for dh (he had been in hospital for a few weeks so sex life obviously stopped for a while. On my face I have no symptoms apart from my lips feeling abit numb but no itching. The lower area is itchy and red but can’t see anything else as huge belly has obscured my view. I don’t have a lot of the symptoms but I understand symptoms can also present very mildly?

thank you for your kind message xxx

Thank you all for all the helpful replies! Xxxx

Genital herpes tends to be horrifically painful and burning rather than itchy, not many of my patients complain of itching, just severe pain, especially when weeing, and feeling really run down and poorly. Thrush can cause splits and sores in the skin, too. A&E sometimes don’t know what they’re looking for and any sores on the genitals they tend to refer to us as ?herpes, sometimes it is but sometimes it is really bad thrush!

I haven’t seen your symptoms so can’t diagnose, but I reckon that you probably have a nasty bout of thrush rather than a herpes outbreak. Do definitely go along to the walk-in tomorrow because whatever it is, it can be sorted 😊

What’s this supposed to mean? “Not looking good”?

Why upset OP on purpose with this dramatic comment.

It could be herpes. I suffer with herpes which came out a lot whilst I was pregnant. The first time I got it I was tested and came back negative but the second time I got it it came positive. If there isn't an actual blister to get fluid from they can't really test you so I wouldn't rely on the test results. I would accept any anti virals they give you and see if they work. So many people have herpes and don't even know especially men! It's a very awkward subject to talk about but a lot more common than people think!