HSV1 Risk of infecting my partner

[marycarolyn44]

I am a 54 year old woman who was diagnosed by my OBGYN office with genital HSV1 in March 2011 while blisters were still present from the initial outbreak. I had been shaving my genital area and my partner had a cut from shaving his face. He performed oral sex on me. My initial outbreak occurred within 24 hours of having oral sex. I took Valtrex to heal the outbreak. I started Valtrex therapy in the fall of 2011 for about a year or so. I have never had another outbreak. I had a mild case of thrush on the inside of my mouth while on a beach vacation in the summer of 2014 which subsided after a few days with no medication. I have never had oral herpes.

I had an STD panel of tests in April 2015 confirming again my HSV1 status in anticipation of a potential intimate relationship. I tested negative for the other STDS. I am open to taking suppression meds if my partner would be more comfortable.

I believe I am approaching the first relationship where I will be sharing my status with a potential partner. I have no idea of his HSV status or STD history yet. I would like reliable information to share with him about his risk in our relationship. I will share your response with my friend when we hopefully get to that important juncture.

I am interested in better understanding the risk of HSV1 transmission to my partner if he performs oral sex or has intercourse with me given my HSV1 status and history. From reading on your website and in your responses, I gather that his risk is small. I appreciate your commitment to helping others move forward with their lives. Thank you very much.

[marycarolyn44]

I was aware that my initial partner carried HSV1 orally but I guess it had been a long time since Sex Ed 101. He did have a cut/scab near his mouth from shaving.

[Terri Warren]

If you end up with a partner near you own age, it is likely, statistically, that they will already have HSV 1 infection. If you ask and they say that they have ever had a cold sore in their lifetime, then they have HSV 1 infection. Once you have this in one location on your body, you are extremely unlikely to ever get it in a new location. So in summary if you are both infected with HSV 1, it’s a non-issue. If he says he’s never had a cold sore, then I think it would be good to actually have them get a blood test for HSV 1 and HSV 2. It would be a shame to acquire HSV 2 without knowing you were at risk of getting it.

If your partner turns out to be negative for HSV 1, then you could take daily antiviral therapy to reduce the risk of your partner becoming infected HSV 1 genitally is shed infrequently, so the risk of transmission via either intercourse or receiving oral sex is quite low – we don’t have exact risks for this but far lower than if you had HSV 2.

Terri

[marycarolyn44]

Thank you Terri. I read on an old reply you made to a participant that if years go by without an additional HSV1 outbreak, there is something like an 88% chance HSV1 may not reoccur. It has been
almost 5 years since my initial HSV1 breakout with no additional outbreaks. Does the likelihood of an breakout decrease with years passing and no additional outbreaks?

My initial outbreak appeared at the top of my genital area where the hair grows. I read that HSV1 mostly shows up in the same area of initial breakout. Is there a possibility that an HSV1 outbreak could be present internally/vaginally of which I would be unaware?

[Terri Warren]

Yes, correct. If a person doesn’t have an recurrence of HSV 1 within the first year, there is an 88% chance they won’t have another.
You can shed from any area of the genitals, regardless of where you initial outbreak was. You could shed internally, yes.

Terri

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