[Question #2142] Long overdue conversion

88 months ago

Hello.

I have genital HSV1 that I received 16 years ago either from my ex wife or from a couple of stripper incidents while going through my divorce. I have been fairly asymptomatic, but occasionally have OB. I have never told my 2nd wife (14 years and 3 kids) that I have HSV1. For all I know she could have it also. For many years we used condoms for birth control also (except when we were trying to get pregnate) but at certain times I would intentionally avoid sex. I was deployed during several outbreaks which was convenient. Recently I got a vasectomy and now I'm really regretting never having told my wife. I recently had an outbreak and went got a perscription. I'm looking for the risks of how likely she is to get HSV1 (if she doesn't have it) and will she have a OB if she has had an oral HSV1 but not a genital HSV1 infection? Thanks!

Terri Warren, RN, Nurse Practitioner

88 months ago

I'm sorry you find yourself in this difficult position. We don't have exact numbers yet about transmission of HSV 1 genital infection, but we believe that people who have HSV 1 genitally shed virus on about 5% of days. If she is the giver of oral sex to you, her outbreak, if she got it, would be oral. If she got it through intercourse, it would be genital. I think an open discussion would be helpful. If I was in her position, I would prefer to know about this before I got infected rather than after. After 14 years, I'm guessing she will forgive this error, what do you think?

Terri
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88 months ago

Thanks Terri. I hope so!

If I am using prescribed medication for suppression and a condom, what is the transmission rate?

88 months ago

Terri- I hit submit too soon. If she is already oral HSV1 positive, what is the likelihood of genital HSV1 outbreak?

Terri Warren, RN, Nurse Practitioner

88 months ago

If she is already infected with HSV 1, I wouldn't worry about transmission to the genital area - either her oral antibody will protect her largely against getting genital infection or she already has it genitally. We do not know the transmission rate of genital HSV 1 to an uninfected partner but if using condoms and suppression it would be very low indeed.

Terri
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88 months ago

Thanks Terri- final question: does showering or washing throughly prior to sex reduce the chance of sheading?

Thanks again for all your insights?

Terri Warren, RN, Nurse Practitioner

88 months ago

That's a great question about washing, and one we don't know the answer to. I would say that if you do it with gentle soap, it at least can't hurt anything. The issue is that even if you wash with soap and destroy all the virus on the skin, shedding could occur during intercourse and you would not be aware of it. In summary, I don't think washing is good enough that you could count on it as a method to reduce transmission of herpes.

Terri
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