A member asked:

What is the possibility of contracting hsv2 in a 5 year period. i was recently diagnosed and go to my gyno yearly and have been tested negative?

2 doctors weighed in across 2 answers
Dr. David Lipkin answered

Specializes in Internal Medicine

See answer: In a study of 3400 sexually active females the percent who acquired genital herpes over a 5 year period was about 5%. In this study genital HSV1 was more common than HSV2. In another study of 200 patients with newly acquired genital HSV the median number of sex acts before transmission was 40. A person with HSV sheds virus in small amounts even between outbreaks. A condom is needed all the time.

Answered 4/7/2016

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Very possible: It is a common infection in adults in the US ( > 20%) that can be transmitted sexually even if the infected person does not have symptoms at the time. Patients can still shed the virus without the classical vesicles being present.

Answered 4/8/2016

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