Ten Facts You Didn't Know About Herpes Simplex

This week, a particularly frightening case was reported: a mother with herpes who absentmindedly kissed her baby almost caused his death. The incident occurred with 28-year-old Kirsty Carrington from England, who, last month, rushed her two-month-old son to the emergency room and heard the words every mother fears: 'We're not sure if he's going to live.'

It was only later, when doctors examined her and discovered the cold sore on her lips, that everyone realized what had happened. "I am utterly devastated. I have never done and would never do anything to endanger my children. The thought that my son almost paid with his life for an innocent kiss is unimaginable," wrote the distressed mother on her Facebook page.

Carrington explained that she had rushed her infant to the hospital as his fever suddenly, and without any apparent reason, spiked above 104°F. "In the ambulance, he began to convulse, his fever didn't drop, and I basically saw him fighting for every breath. I remember the doctor asking if anyone in the house had been ill recently, and it struck me that I was the one who made him sick, due to my cold sore. The quick treatment he received from the doctors saved my Ollie-John's life, and when he smiled at me for the first time, I burst into tears of immense relief. I feel like I've gotten my child back," she wrote.

So how do you identify herpes and prevent such extreme cases? Here are some facts you won't want to miss:

Who am I, and what is my name?

1. Herpes is the general name for a family of viruses with at least eight species, causing various diseases. The more common type is oral herpes - a cluster of cold sores, but other strains of herpes can cause chickenpox, rubella, lymphoma (lymph cancer), throat cancer, infectious mononucleosis, and more.

2. Oral herpes is known as 'simplex', and it attacks not only the lips (often the upper lip) but also the cheeks, nose, nostrils, and sometimes other facial areas. It results from prolonged exposure to extreme heat or cold.

Herpes Simplex (Illustration: Shutterstock)

How can you get infected?

3. Since it's a virus that spreads easily and is transmitted to the skin through direct contact or through 'intermediaries' like cups, etc., it's very easy to contract it. Studies have shown that contrary to popular belief that you can only get infected when the virus is visible, the opposite is true, and you can get infected even when the tiny sores are only potential and not yet visible.

4. In Hebrew, herpes is referred to as 'shlabeket'.

5. During a herpes outbreak, kissing babies and children is strictly forbidden, as for them, herpes can cause irreversible damage, and sometimes even death (!).

Who might get infected, and when?

6. Two-thirds of the world's population, aged 18-50, carry the herpes virus.

7. Not everyone who carries the herpes virus will fall ill from it in their lifetime. It's possible to be a 'passive' carrier of the disease without ever actually contracting it.

8. The most well-known cream in the country for treating herpes is Zovirax, prescribed upon a doctor's recommendation.

9. The inventor and developer of Zovirax ointment is a German researcher named Gertrude Elion, who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1988.

10. Herpes 'shines' particularly during the transition period between summer and winter.