Brief summary: The current management guidelines recommended by
ACOG rely on history as a screening method to determine pregnant
women who are at risk for transmitting herpes to their newborn.
History fails completely in identifying the women most at risk
of transmitting herpes to their newborn - the seronegative woman
who acquires a primary infection from her partner during
pregnancy. Despite recent advances, both pregnant women and
newborns continue to be at risk of acquiring herpes infection.
Genital herpes infections are epidemic in the United States. In
the early 1990's, 25% of women in the US were seropositive for
the HSV-2 antibody. These numbers are likely higher now. The
incidence of neonatal herpes in the US cannot be accurately
estimated since it is not a reportable disease. However, in some
areas of the US, the incidence is 1 in 3,200 live births which
would translate to an incidence of approximately three infants a
day in the US . In other areas of the US, the incidence is even
higher, approachin