Where is genital herpes most common in the world

Symptomatic recurrent orolabial herpes can range from a mere annoyance to severe disease in the setting of immunocompromise. In addition, HSV-1 is one of the most common causes of sporadic encephalitis, which is rare but devastating, with high morbidity and associated costs[ 6 , 7 ] and HSV-1 also contributes to neonatal infections and deaths. Patterns of HSV-1 and HSV-2 infection, and their relative contribution to genital disease, are a product of multiple interactions.

These include: different routes of transmission, different risk profiles by age, and the role of cross-immunity. Decreases in childhood HSV-1 infection and increases in orogenital sex have the potential to introduce genital HSV-1 as a public health issue in those regions where it is currently minimally present, since decreasing childhood-acquired immunity to HSV-1 oral HSV-1 otherwise seems to protect against genital HSV-1 means more adults are at risk of acquiring genital HSV-1 through oral sex.

Despite the limited availability of data informing these estimates, we hope to increase understanding of the global scope of HSV-1 infection, and guide development of future prevention efforts. Efforts to develop new HSV vaccines are advancing[ 42 ]. There are currently a number of HSV vaccine candidates in the development pipeline, with several therapeutic vaccines which work in those already infected to reduce viral shedding and disease and prophylactic vaccines in Phase I and II trials, in conjunction with substantial advances in delivery systems, adjuvants and stimulation of mucosal immunity[ 42 ].

These estimates lay the groundwork for determining the potential impact of a vaccine against HSV and informing important vaccine characteristics. In Africa and South-East Asia, a vaccine targeting HSV-2 infection would address genital herpes but would need to be effective in the presence of HSV-1 infection if targeted to adolescents or would need to be an infant vaccine.

Increased data on the epidemiology of HSV-1 are needed to strengthen the robustness of these estimates and provide a clearer picture in all regions as to how HSV-1 differs by age and sex. Furthermore, an improved understanding of the interaction between HSV-1 and HSV-2 at different anatomic sites on protective immunity is needed.

It is hoped these estimates will be used to develop appropriate prevention messages, manage and counsel patients with symptomatic genital herpes, develop improved treatment regimens and diagnostic tests, and ultimately, develop HSV vaccines. Footnote to S2 Table 1 Age-stratified data used preferentially over sex-stratified data where not stratified by both simultaneously; 2 Relaxing this restriction would not have had any effect on data availability.

Comparison of two enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays and one rapid immunoblot assay for detection of herpes simplex virus type 2-specific antibodies in serum. Journal of clinical microbiology.

Comparative performance of herpes simplex virus type 1-specific serologic assays from MRL and Meridian Diagnostics. Performed the experiments: KJL. Browse Subject Areas? Click through the PLOS taxonomy to find articles in your field. Methods We fitted a constant-incidence model to pooled HSV-1 prevalence data from literature searches for 6 World Health Organization regions and used population data to derive global numbers of year-olds with prevalent and incident HSV-1 infection.

Conclusions The global burden of HSV-1 infection is huge. The work is made available under the Creative Commons CC0 public domain dedication Data Availability: All relevant data are within the paper and its Supporting Information files. Methods The method of estimation was multi-step and very similar to the method used to generate HSV-2 prevalence and incidence[ 16 , 17 ]. Ethics Statement It was not necessary to seek ethical approval for this study as this study is an analysis of existing published prevalence data and as such did not involve human participants directly.

Results Data availability A total of publications were identified in the literature search Fig 1. Download: PPT. Fig 1. Number of studies at each stage of the literature search and study selection process. Fig 2. Table 1. Global and regional estimates of the number of existing prevalent cases of HSV-1 infection in by age and sex, in millions percentage of population with prevalent infection shown in parentheses.

Incident HSV-1 infection in The total number of new infections in was estimated to be million Table 2. Table 2. Global and regional estimates of the number of new incident cases of HSV-1 infection in by age and sex, in millions percentage of population with incident infection shown in parentheses. Table 3. Global and regional estimates of the number of existing prevalent cases of genital HSV-1 infection among 15—49 year olds in by age and sex, in millions percentage of population with prevalent infection shown in parentheses , as a function of the assumed proportion of incident HSV-1 infections in this age group that are genital.

Table 4. Global and regional estimates of the prevalence of, and total number of individuals with, genital herpes infection due to either HSV-1 or HSV-2 among 15—49 year olds in , by sex, as a function of the assumed proportion of incident HSV-1 infections in this age group that are genital. Table 5. Discussion An estimated million people globally aged 0—49 years were infected with prevalent HSV-1 in Impact and recommendations This is the first attempt to calculate the global burdens of all HSV-1 and genital HSV-1, and hence the first attempt to quantify the extent to which genital HSV-1 presents a public health problem across different regions.

Supporting Information. S1 Database. Studies reporting HSV-1 seroprevalence and incidence in general populations identified from the current literature review. Further details of the Methods. S1 Reference List. List of publications to accompany S1 Database. S1 Table. Region groupings. S2 Table. Region-specific HSV-1 prevalence criteria for use in the estimates. S3 Table. These factors can have an important impact on quality of life and sexual relationships. However, with time, most people with herpes adjust to living with the infection.

Genital herpes increases the risk of getting HIV by about three times. Spread of HSV from mother to child during birth is a rare condition, happening in an estimated 10 out of every , births globally, but can lead to lasting disability or death. The risk for giving herpes to the infant is greatest when a mother gets an HSV infection for the first time in late pregnancy.

Women who have genital herpes before they become pregnant are at very low risk of spreading HSV to their infants. Genital herpes infection is often diagnosed clinically by a qualified health provider through physical examination. When vesicles are not present, laboratory confirmation may also be needed to rule out other causes of genital ulcers. There have been major developments in the diagnosis of HSV-2 including using rapid molecular diagnostic tests, some prequalified by WHO.

Antiviral medications are the most effective medications available for people infected with genital herpes. These can help to reduce the severity and frequency of symptoms but cannot cure the infection.

Often, however, it causes no symptoms. Both types of virus are contagious, and there is currently no cure. Keep reading to learn more about how many people have herpes. We also discuss the common myths surrounding this infection. This is the virus that most often causes oral herpes.

This difference is due to the fact that women tend to contract HSV-2 more easily from sexual contact. Although herpes is common, many myths and misunderstandings surround it. Here are some of the most common ones:. Fact: Most people who have oral or genital herpes do not have any symptoms, according to the WHO.

Therefore, a person may not know that they have herpes, which means that they could unintentionally spread it to others. Fact: Not all cases of herpes spread through sex. HSV-1 often spreads through contact with the skin or saliva of a person who has the infection. For instance, people can spread it by kissing, sharing utensils, touching an infected surface, or having skin-to-skin contact.

According to the CDC, most people who have HSV-1, which can cause cold sores, got it during childhood from nonsexual contact, such as receiving a kiss from a family member. Fact: People can spread herpes to others at any time, including when they do not have any symptoms. People with herpes may experience outbreaks and remissions. During an outbreak, a person has active sores or blisters, but in remission, they may have no symptoms at all. This is why some cases of genital herpes are caused by HSV Genital herpes is common in the United States.

More than one out of every six people aged 14 to 49 years have genital herpes. You can get genital herpes by having vaginal, anal, or oral sex with someone who has the disease. If you do not have herpes, you can get infected if you come into contact with the herpes virus in:. You can get herpes from a sex partner who does not have a visible sore or who may not know he or she is infected.

It is also possible to get genital herpes if you receive oral sex from a sex partner who has oral herpes. You will not get herpes from toilet seats, bedding, or swimming pools, or from touching objects around you such as silverware, soap, or towels.

If you have additional questions about how herpes is spread, consider discussing your concerns with a healthcare provider. If you are sexually active, you can do the following things to lower your chances of getting genital herpes:. Be aware that not all herpes sores occur in areas that are covered by a latex condom. Also, herpes virus can be released shed from areas of the skin that do not have a visible herpes sore.

For these reasons, condoms may not fully protect you from getting herpes. If you are in a relationship with a person known to have genital herpes, you can lower your risk of getting genital herpes if:. If you are pregnant and have genital herpes, it is very important for you to go to prenatal care visits. Tell your doctor if you have ever had symptoms of, or have been diagnosed with, genital herpes.

Also tell your doctor if you have ever been exposed to genital herpes. There is some research that suggests that genital herpes infection may lead to miscarriage, or could make it more likely for you to deliver your baby too early. Herpes infection can be passed from you to your unborn child before birth but is more commonly passed to your infant during delivery. This can lead to a potentially deadly infection in your baby called neonatal herpes.

It is important that you avoid getting herpes during pregnancy.