Herpes Transmission

[david1234]

Dear Sir,

I am slightly concerned. My ex-girlfriend came to stay with me on Friday Night. I had an outbreak of herpes two weeks previous to this and believed it had cleared up - but only in the one or two days before Friday. There might have been a little bit of dead skin etc..

We did not have sex, but I masturbated myself and her (with interchangable hands) four or five times.

The next day I woke up and the area where I had a herpes outbreak was redened (I thought this mught be because it is new skin and there had obvioulsy been quite a lot of friction). This did however scare the hell out of me. I am nervious that I was still virolent and might have infected her with my fingers.

Later on in the day I noticed that the area on my penis had a few bits of dry skin on it, and on incredibly close inspection it seemed as if there might have still been a tiny round break in the skin - although the bottom of this looked like it was pink with new skin.

Is it possible that I infected her even though I was pretty well healed?

Thank you

[H. Hunter Handsfield, M.D.]

Almost certainly you did not transmit HSV to your partner by your hands; that is not known to happen, or at least is so rare you can forget about it.

But it sounds like you still need to read up on genital herpes and preventing transmission.  Assuming you also have intercourse with you partner, and that means she is at risk, even if you are very careful to avoid sex when you have an outbreak.  If not yet done, your partner needs to have a blood test to see if she is already infected or still susceptible to catching it from you.

Go read the herpes information available at the Seattle-King Co. Health Department (www.metrokc.gov/health/apu/std/), the American Social Health Association (www.ashastd.org), or CDC (www.cdc.gov/std).

HHH, MD

[david1234]

Well, I have refused to have sex with her until she agrees to marry me. I love her deeply and the thought of her catching herpes without the gauruntee of not being alone rips me to pieces.

Thank you for your swift reply. Can you confirm that transmission through my hands is unlikely even if my outbreak was only 95% cleared up (no scabs left and new skin almost all formed).

Once again thank you - I feel as if I can calm down a little now. So many damn websites preach fire and brimstone - 'if you so much as look at your penis and happen to glance at her vagina shes doomed etc...'

Thanks