herpes in pregnancy

[hotcrossbunnies]

hiya,

have namechanged but just looking for some advice re herpes

Baby due in August but desperate for natural birth, obv if herpes is active then cs it will be but does anyone have any remedies, ideas, solutions about keeping it at bay, natural/medical, (obv preg friedndly)

thanks very much.

hi

i have the same problem with my first pregnancy it was never an issue. i just kept myself healthy and i ended up with a CS anyway due to other reasons (not dilating).

good luck and let's hope we can both do it naturally this time round!

If you have herpes it can be "suppressed" in pregnancy with aciclovir [just a different dose as you re pg] Its a prescription medication that can be prescribed by your gp or at a gum clinic.HTH

I know as i work in at a gum clinic.

Check with your obstetrician - mosy units would only perform a CS for the FIRST episode of herpes at term, not for a reoccurance. See NICE CS guidelines. You would only be treated to shorten an outbreak and relieve the symptoms, not as a preventative as stated above.

Best advice, stay active and healthy, good balanced diet and exercise. And don't stress about it.

At our clinic the drs and myself included as an independant prescriber can prescribe aciclovir as a suppressive medication if you were suffering recurrent outbreaks during your pregnancy, particularly , towards the latter end of your pregnancy.Not just "to relieve the symptons" as quoted above.

thank you so much ladies, very very helpful.

How do you know if you have herpes?
I worry cause I sometimes have stinging/itching for a few days.. :-/
Would you be able to see it?

Do people who've had coldsores on their lip have the herpes virus?

I wouldn't know what an outbreak is like, may have, I don't know.
Would it get picked up when you go to the GUM clinic for a full MOT?
Do they test for it in pregnancy?

mumtotwoboys, you would know, it is agonising!

I worried all way through preg but thankfully did not have flare up. Had CS anyway as dd got stuck.

ok thanks

No we don t test for it at gum clinics .We only perform a hsv swab if a pt presents with symptons [blisters].There is a blood test you can have for the hsv but don t know much about it as not normally utilised by gum clinics.

The hsv swab normally identifies typing of hsv [as mentioned above].As far as i m aware its not a test thats offered routinely in pregnancy and would only be considered if you presented with the above symptons.Good luck X

I have herpes and it always really worried me during my pregnancies. I would talk to your midwife etc and express your concerns. It's a very common virus and I can guarantee you won't have been the first to ask!!

And it is nice that some of us are talking about it as it is an embarrassing, stigmatising virus despite it being fairly common.

True missmoopy, and it drives me mad that it's so stigmatised. The herpes virus, on your face or on your fanjo is just a coldsore!! Ok, it's bloody painful and not pleasant at the best of times, and I'd really rather I didn't get them, but they're still just coldsores!!

I learnt long ago that if I say that I have coldsores I get an altogether different reaction than if I say I have herpes!! Some people just don't realise that herpes/coldsores are one and the same thing.

Having an outbreak during pregnancy is a concern though, and well worth speaking to medical professionals about.