Cervical Tissue Complications: Impact of Herpes in Labor & Delivery

For women who are pregnant, there are many infections that cause for concern both during pregnancy and after delivery of your infant. For women who suffer from the herpes simplex virus, the risks are not only great for the mother but also for the infant, especially when HSV breakout occurs during pregnancy.

Herpes simplex virus is a sexually transmitted disease that leads to an array of lifelong health complication in the person who carries the virus. For women who become pregnant, the herpes simplex virus can be easily transmitted to an infant during the labor and delivery process.

Referred to as neonatal herpes simplex virus, infants who are born to an infected mother who, during pregnancy experiences a herpes outbreak, are at great risk for health complications immediately after birth. This is especially true of pregnant women who experience breakout during the third trimester of pregnancy.

The rate at which infants acquire neonatal herpes simplex virus is an astounding 33 percent with many acquiring the complication due to the shedding of cervical tissue, from an asymptomatic mother who may have suffered from an outbreak during the latter part of her pregnancy. Even if no outbreak is present at the time of infant delivery, the infant is still at risk for acquiring the STD.

When born, an infant who has been infected with HSV will often struggle from low birth weight in addition to complications such as hydrocephalus and lesions commonly develop in and around the eyes, nose and mouth. Often, these complications are diagnosed as related to herpes simplex many months after birth.