hsv1 to genital transmission

[confusedandmad718]

Ok so I have been with my husband for 9years,  he was not my first(all sex was protected) but I was his. So now I am pregnant for the second time and had 2 small genital lesions so I went to the obgyn and had a vaginal swab done. It came back positive for hsv 1. Neither of us has ever had any cold sores.
1) could the test have been wrong and its something else entirely?
2)could I have had this for years and its just now showing up(even after 1 baby, very high stress times and lots of sickness)
3)could I just have the hsv 1 virus dormant orally and because they tested specifically for herpes 1 and 2 genitally it came up as having it there when really I only have it orally?

[Pharmacist1]

1-The test gets the accurate results .

2-Yes , the virus is totally harmless and many people have it without symptoms , some outbreaks may occur due to some triggers ,.

3- It may contracted orally through oral sex to the genitals.

[Fleetwood20]

This is a very common occurrence for couples where one does not have HSV1 and becomes infected through oral sex.

The test is not likely to be wrong. Having said that, confirm that it was the swab test that was cultured for HSV1 or the subject of PCR (very accurate testing of swabs). Did you have a blood test for IgG antibodies at the same time and get some results from that?

It is also not common to be infected with HSV1 as an adult as a primary infection and not know it. The fact that you describe small lesions suggests a recurrent outbreak in the sense that infection happened some time ago (outbreak or not). It could be though that you have just been infected. Up to half of people with oral HSV1 do not recall outbreaks, hence your husband could be one of these. Oral sex in the 2-10 days before you first noticed the lesions could have resulted in the infection.

So explicitly to your questions:
1. Test likely to be right.
2. Yes you could have had this quite some time, or you could have been just infected, your symptoms are not clear cut.
3. If the genital swab tested positive for HSV1, then that is where it is. Further then, you are most unlikely to have it orally given an established immune system dramatically reduces the chances of an infection arising elsewhere on the body.

The important thing is that this is a very common virus that is most unlikely to impact upon your baby. Work with your doctor on a safe delivery. For women with genital HSV1 there are only 1 in many thousands of their babies who become infected during childbirth. Risks are moderated with antivirals, c-section etc. if need be.