Herpes, The Effect On Newborns And Infants
Diagnosed Or Not, The Effects Will Be There
The sexually transmitted disease, genital herpes, not only can have devastating
effects on a woman, but if she is pregnant, it can profoundly affect her
baby. Herpes is caused by the herpes
simplex virus and is presented in either the Type 1 or Type 2 viruses. Type 1 is generally associated with cold
sores around the lip and mouth area and Type 2 is usually associated with
genital sores. Either type can affect an
unborn baby or a newborn during the birth process.
Because most herpes infections, both primary and recurrent, do not produce any symptoms,
these infections generally go undiagnosed.
As a result, studies have indicated that up to 90 percent of people
infected with genital herpes do not know they have it (American Social Health
Assn. Herpes: Get the Facts). The fact
remains though, that women who are infected and are not showing symptoms can
still pass the virus to their baby.
The Center
for disease Control and Prevention in their article STD Prevention: Genital
Herpes, 24/05/04, reported that about 1 in 4 pregnant women have been infected
with genital herpes, although most do not know it. How does this affect an unborn or newborn
baby?
The Effect On The Baby
Most
newborns get the virus from their mothers at the time of delivery; however,
there have been cases of newborns contracting the virus before birth
(Infectious Diseases of the Fetus and Newborn Infant, Remington, J. And Klein,
J.). Some babies contract the virus after
birth through an infected adult - perhaps by a kiss from someone with a cold
sore.
Some
newborns who have been infected have skin or mouth sores or eye
infections. If the infection is localized
to these areas, the baby can go on to grow and develop normally. There is, however, a real danger that the
infections can spread to the brain and internal organs. Symptoms of herpes virus in such cases cause
the baby to appear irritable, eat poorly, have seizures or develop infections in the internal organs. Half of the infants with widespread
infections involving the internal organs die, as do about 10 percent of those
with brain infections as reported in Infectious Diseases of the Fetus and
Newborn Infant - Remington and Klein. It
is also reported in the same document, that many babies who survive widespread
internal organ infections and brain infections develop lasting disabilities, such as mental
retardations, cerebral palsy, seizures, and vision or hearing loss.
The bottom
line for pregnant women with Herpes is to get medical attention and report any
abnormalities to her medical service provider.
|
