Congenital herpes simplex

Title

Other Names:

Congenital herpes simplex virus infection; Antenatal herpes simplex virus infection; Mother-to-child transmission of herpes simplex virus infection

Summary Summary

The following summary is from Orphanet, a European reference portal for information on rare diseases and orphan drugs.

Orpha Number: 293

Definition

Congenital herpes virus infection is a group of anomalies that an infant may present as a result of maternal infection and subsequent foetal infection with herpes virus. This virus causes recurrent cutaneous infections in adults, often involving the lips or the genitalia. Herpes infections in other organs, such as the liver or central nervous system, are less frequent.

Clinical description

Skin lesions and scars, chorioretinitis, microcephaly, hydrencephaly, and microphthalmia have been described in infants with in utero primary herpes virus infections, but a causal relationship between these manifestations and the infection could not be established. Pregnancy complications including preterm delivery, intrauterine growth retardation, and neonatal infection have been attributed to the herpes virus.

Etiology

There are two types of virus (HSV-1 and HSV-2) and both appear to have the same activity. However, type 1 infections more commonly involve the oral cavity, whereas type 2 infections more commonly involve the genital region. It has been suggested that latent HSV-2 infections occur in as many as 20 to 40% of women. Exposure of the foetus to herpes virus at the time of delivery carries a serious risk of infection for the newborn. This risk may be high during the initial infection of the mother (33 to 50%), but probably does not exceed 3% in cases of reinfection because of the protective effect of maternal antibodies.

Differential diagnosis

It remains difficult to distinguish between cases with a primary infection and those with a previously undetected recurrent infection that has become symptomatic during pregnancy.

Management and treatment

In spite of described cases of serious foetal illness, primary infection with herpes virus during pregnancy is not an indication for therapeutic abortion, and the use of antivirals in the treatment of primary herpes infections during gestation has been recommended. Some authors recommend caesarean delivery for women with first-episode genital herpes lesions at the time of delivery.

Visit the Orphanet disease page for more resources.

Last updated: 3/1/2006

Symptoms Symptoms

This table lists symptoms that people with this disease may have. For most diseases, symptoms will vary from person to person. People with the same disease may not have all the symptoms listed. This information comes from a database called the Human Phenotype Ontology (HPO) . The HPO collects information on symptoms that have been described in medical resources. The HPO is updated regularly. Use the HPO ID to access more in-depth information about a symptom.

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Medical Terms	Other Names	Learn More: HPO ID
30%-79% of people have these symptoms
Intrauterine growth retardation	Prenatal growth deficiency Prenatal growth retardation [ more ]	0001511
Premature birth	Premature delivery of affected infants Preterm delivery [ more ]	0001622
5%-29% of people have these symptoms
Hydranencephaly		0002324
Microcephaly	Abnormally small skull Decreased circumference of cranium Decreased size of skull Reduced head circumference Small head circumference [ more ]	0000252

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Last updated: 3/1/2020

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Treatment Treatment

FDA-Approved Treatments

The medication(s) listed below have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as orphan products for treatment of this condition. Learn more orphan products.

Capsaicin (Brand name: Qutenza) - Manufactured by NeurogesX, Inc.
FDA-approved indication: Management of neuropathic pain associated with postherpetic neuralgia
National Library of Medicine Drug Information Portal

Research Research

Research helps us better understand diseases and can lead to advances in diagnosis and treatment. This section provides resources to help you learn about medical research and ways to get involved.

Clinical Research Resources

ClinicalTrials.gov lists trials that are related to Congenital herpes simplex. Click on the link to go to ClinicalTrials.gov to read descriptions of these studies.

Please note: Studies listed on the ClinicalTrials.gov website are listed for informational purposes only; being listed does not reflect an endorsement by GARD or the NIH. We strongly recommend that you talk with a trusted healthcare provider before choosing to participate in any clinical study.

Learn More Learn More

These resources provide more information about this condition or associated symptoms. The in-depth resources contain medical and scientific language that may be hard to understand. You may want to review these resources with a medical professional.

In-Depth Information

Orphanet is a European reference portal for information on rare diseases and orphan drugs. Access to this database is free of charge.

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