Herpetic Whitlow (herpes) outbreak in third trimester

[birthowl]

My husband has a active oral herpes outbreak for the first time in his life. I am 34 weeks pregnant. We always shared cups, spoons and plates before his outbreak etc. Now I got a herpes outbreak at my finger.
I do not completely understand the possibility of transmission to the baby - I read they are very slim in utero and only the genital herpes is a threat as it can be transmitted at the birth to the baby.
Am I at risk for genital herpes now? Could I have given it already to myself through the lesions of my finger?/ is the Virus in my blood and can break out at different parts of the body?/ could I have genital herpes but no lesions at the vagina?
We are planning a UC and had Upregnancy so far. Please share your insight on the subject matter. Is this issue something I have to seriously worry about?

[ShwarmaQueen]

Ive always understood oral and genital herpes to be two separate viruses. I think as long as your sore is healed by the time you are in labor the chances of transmission are low.

[birthowl]

"Under a microscope, HSV- 1 and 2 are virtually identical, sharing approximately 50% of their DNA. Both types infect the body's mucosal surfaces, usually the mouth or genitals, and then establish latency in the nervous system. For both types, at least two-thirds of infected people have no symptoms, or symptoms too mild to notice. However, both types can recur and spread even when no symptoms are present." - Such medical statements make me a little nervous.

I would like to thank you for your response Shwarma Queen. Simple. What you focus on is what you manifest - I am sure it will be fine and at the time of birth there will be no problem. I trust in birth, and have to work through my issues.

It is great to have some cyber-support & community out there.

[Serenyd]

http://www.herpes.com/pregnancy.shtml - I found this site has a lot of information.

"If the baby's mother has genital herpes, it is worth keeping a close eye on the baby for several weeks after birth, just to make sure no infection develops. Symptoms usually start in the first 14 days of life and may develop any time in the first month."

If it were me, I'd check with a ped and get some advice and a checkup for baby as well.
How far along are you?

[mommyminer]

What makes you think you have a herpes lesion on your finger? I've never heard of an outbreak on your finger (not saying it can't happen but...).

Yes, oral and genital herpes are different and it is rare to spread oral to genital and vice versa BUT it CAN happen. So, NO oral sex until the lesion is healed.

I get cold sores and when I was pg I took lysine. It really seems to help me.

[mwherbs]

so there is a western blot test that can tell you if it is a primary outbreak of type 1 or 2- primary outbreaks (of either) have a 5% chance of transmitting it to a fetus- usually if you have had type 1 you have some resistance to type 2

so it may be the first time you have had a whitlow outbreak you may have had a cold sore or other outbreak at another time and it would not be considered a primary outbreak- then I would try to keep my hand in a glove to keep direct contact away from the baby's skin during birth and early postpartum and to keep from spreading lesions to other areas of my body yes there may be other areas of viral shedding that we don't know about but the sore is obvious and is high in concentration -- depending on what you want to do you could also get an anti-viral med from a medical provider-

[rajahkat]

I just wanted to mention to remind your dh (or anybody else!)to be especially careful if he is having an outbreak after the baby is born. We so often focus on HSV-2 and the possibility of transmission at birth, but transmission from a cold sore on the mouth is a very real and just as potentially devastating possibility. I would actually worry less about a mom with herpes passing it to her baby due to antibodies being transferred prenatally than a partner or other close family member with a cold sore who didn't know to NOT kiss the baby.

[CageFreeFamily]

Lemon Balm/Melissa will speed healing and supress outbreaks.
It has the added benefit of being a great tea for soothing nerves, tension, depression.

It tastes good with a little cream and honey too. I drank it daily during my last PP period to help with the emotional transition.

HTH

[CorasMama]

May I recommend getting on suppressive therapy for your last couple of months? You can't always tell, especially if you're not familiar with the initial symptoms, when you're getting an outbreak. Normally, I hesitate to even take a tylenol during pregnancy, but herpes transmitted during childbirth is Nothing To Fool Around With. There are really potentially dire consequences, and since you won't be having a professional birth attendant to check you out when you go into labor, you need to make sure your risk of transmitting to the baby is as low as you can make it.

I'm not UCing, but I am having a super-hands-off midwife, who doesn't even like to do internal exams even during labor (which suits me fine). BUT, for this very reason I will have ONE very well-lit check when I first go into labor. I'll be on suppressive therapy, so my insistence on that one check is probably overkill, but it's not something that you can avoid transmitting if you are having an outbreak. If I am, by some small chance (really, really small if you're on suppressive therapy) I am having an outbreak, it's (by my choice, having read all the research) an automatic c/s. But because I'll be on suppressive therapy, that's extraordinarily unlikely. My midwife only takes really low-risk patients, and she's comfortable with not doing the check if I don't ask for it. (She actually thinks that, with suppressive therapy, it's unnecessary, that's how well suppressive therapy works).