Infection during pregnancy and birth | Herpes in babies – How dangerous is it?

Infection during pregnancy and birth

A great danger of infection exists during the birth process. Most babies acquire the virus during birth when passing through the birth canal if the mother has genital herpes. If the virus rises in the mother’s vagina as part of an infection, it can also be transmitted to the baby if the bladder bursts prematurely.

If the mother is infected for the first time during pregnancy, the virus can also be transmitted to the unborn child. If the virus has infected the mother’s entire body, it can be transmitted via the placenta into the blood of the child. In this case, serious complications, massive malformations and increased premature births frequently occur.

Signs and accompanying symptoms

The first signs of an existing herpes infection in babies are manifold and usually appear 1 – 26 days after infection. If an infection with type 1 herpes viruses is present, the skin and mucous membranes in the facial area are mainly affected. Very painful, small blisters can develop in the oral cavity, which can quickly become inflamed and burst open.

(If the virus continues to spread in the mouth area, fever and swelling of the cervical lymph nodes usually occur. The babies also attract attention by becoming very restless, crying a lot and refusing to drink because the blisters in the mouth are very painful. Once the initial infection with the herpes virus type 1 is over, the viruses initially linger in the ganglia, which are formed by nerve cells and are present in the head area.

They can be reactivated if the immune system becomes weak again. Herpes of the lips does not occur frequently in babies, as this is usually a secondary infection. In type 2 herpes virus infections, the skin and mucous membranes in the genital area are affected.

Here, too, small blisters (on the labia or foreskin) develop, which are very painful and can be accompanied by problems urinating and infections of the urethra. Here too, babies can develop fever and swelling of the lymph nodes in addition to the skin symptoms mentioned. If infection occurs during birth, the first symptoms appear in the first weeks after birth. The babies often appear very worn out and limp, have a rather grayish skin color, develop fever and refuse to drink.