Condoms prevent herpes infection

Using condoms consistently can help prevent people from getting genital herpes.

Genital herpes is caused by infection with herpes simplex viruses 1 and 2 though most infections are caused by Herpes simplex virus – 2 (HSV-2). The infection can cause painful sores in the genital area. There is no treatment that can cure herpes, but antivirals can shorten and prevent outbreaks during the period of time the person takes the medication, but once a person gets infected with HSV-2, they usually carry it life-long.

While the benefits of condom use for preventing the spread of HIV infection, Chlamydia, gonorrhea and other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) is well established, evidence on whether condoms are effective against HSV-2 virus has been mixed.

To study the degree of effectiveness of condom use in preventing the transmission of herpes infection, researchers from America combined data from six different studies of HSV-2 incidence and condom use, including 5,384 people in total. The participants were free of HSV-2 infection when the studies began. During follow-up, which averaged just over a year, 415 subjects got infected by genital herpes.

People who reported always using condoms were 30 per cent less likely to get infected than people who didn't use condoms, while the risk of becoming infected rose steadily with the number of unprotected sex acts.

The researchers noted that condoms are only partly protective, because HSV-2 can spread by skin-to-skin contact, which could occur in areas not covered by the condom. Also, even when people with genital herpes don't have a visible signs of infection, they may be able to infect others with the virus.

Nevertheless, the above findings indicate that condoms do provide some degree of protection against herpes.