Reply To: Girlfriend gets cold sores. Should I be worried?

[Anonymous]

Thanks, I will most certainly get an IgG test as soon as possible. If I am understanding this correctly, there is a distinct possibility that I am already infected with HSV 1, HSV 2, or both, but am not aware of it because I am asymtomatic.

So if 56% of people aged 14 to 49 have HSV1, but 70% don’t know it, that means only about 30% of people with the virus actually get outbreaks and the rest just carry it unknowingly. Or, 5.6 out of 10 people have herpes, but only 3 out of 10 exhibit symptoms. Does that seem about right?

If I have antibodies in my blood, but have never manifested symptoms, is it safe to say that I will likely never have an outbreak?