A study published in the Jan. 8 Journal of the American Medical Association confirms that Caesarian section does prevent transmission of herpes simplex virus (HSV) from mother to child.
The 18-year cohort study analyzed 48,390 deliveries at UW Medical Center and Madigan Army Medical Center, where HSV blood tests were routinely performed as a part of deliveries. Twenty-three percent of the women tested negative for any herpes simplex virus, 49 percent had only HSV-1 (associated with cold sores) antibodies, 11 percent had only HSV-2 (commonly known as genital herpes) antibodies, and 17 percent had both HSV-1 and HSV-2 antibodies.
The highest rate of transmission, 1 in 1,900 cases, was among women whose blood showed no HSV antibodies. Women who acquire HSV in the final three months of pregnancy, through sexual activity, are more likely to be shedding HSV. The study shows that they do not show HSV antibodies in the blood, and their infants have not received protective HSV antibodies from their mothers, making them more vulnerable to the HSV being actively shed in the mother's birth canal.
Researchers on the study include Zane Brown, professor of obstetrics and gynecology, Lawrence Corey, professor of medicine and pediatrics, and Anna Wald, associate professor of medicine and epidemiology.
As a consquence of this study, Brown recommends that all pregnant women receive a blood test for genital herpes at the first prenatal visit. If testing demonstrates that a woman is susceptible for acquiring genital herpes during pregnancy, then her partner should be tested. If the partner tests differently from the woman, then the couple should receive counseling on methods to prevent her from acquiring genital herpes during the last trimester of pregnancy.
January 10, 2003