Research shows that there are a disturbing number of people under the age of 50 living with genital herpes
According to the latest global estimates, more than 846 million adults worldwide are currently living with genital herpes.
Genital herpes is an extremely common and lifelong sexually transmitted disease spread by two types of the herpes simplex virus (HSV).
Both types one and two can cause genital herpes. Type one, which can occur early in life, typically causes oral herpes (manifesting as cold sores), while HSV-2 is typically associated with sexual transmission and genital herpes.
An international team of researchers sought to improve on previous methods of estimating the prevalence of both types of HSV worldwide in people under 50 years of age, starting with the World Health Organization’s 2012 and 2016 estimates.
More broadly, the research team found that two-thirds of the world’s population – about 3.8 billion people – were living with some form of the most common HSV-1 in 2020.
In 2020 alone, there were 122 million new HSV-1 infections in people from birth to 49 years old, including 16.8 million new genital infections.
And among people ages 15 to 39 affected by sexually transmitted HSV-2, researchers identified 26 million new infections in 2020, bringing the total number of people currently living with HSV-2 to 520 million.
Many people with this condition struggle with thoughts such as, “My life is ruined” or “No one will ever accept me.” These feelings of shame can prevent them from seeking medical help.
Each year, approximately 20 million Americans test positive for sexually transmitted infections. Statistics experts say this is symptomatic of a larger public health crisis, with rates of some diseases, such as syphilis, reaching historic highs.
Between 50 and 80 percent of Americans get an occasional cold sore, while about 12 percent of Americans ages 14 to 49 have genital herpes.
Genital herpes sometimes causes painful blisters and open sores on the vagina, penis, labia or testicles, but can also be asymptomatic. In addition, the herpes simplex virus family can lie dormant in the body without causing noticeable problems.
When the virus infects a person, it can travel to a cluster of sensory nerves in the brain and remain dormant for months or even years after the initial infection.
But during times of stress, severe fatigue or changes in the immune system, the virus can reactivate, multiply and travel back to the skin via nerve fibers. These stressful times can result in new blisters in the same area as the initial infection.
Rates of HSV-2 were particularly high among young adults in the Americans and Africa. The incidence of HSV-2 generally decreased with age in both regions, indicating a higher risk of infection in younger people.
In 2020, approximately 25.6 million new genital HSV-2 infections occurred worldwide among persons aged 15 to 49 years, and 16.8 million new genital HSV-1 infections occurred worldwide in the same age group.
A total of 122.2 million new HSV-1 infections (orally or genitally acquired) were estimated in people from birth to age 49 years, with the African region having the highest incidence.
Researchers have found that the global prevalence of incurable genital herpes has decreased in recent years. According to the latest estimates, about 1 in 5 people under the age of 50, or 846 million worldwide, suffer from genital herpes.
Both herpes simplex virus types one and two can cause genital herpes. Type one, which can occur early in life, typically causes oral herpes (manifesting as cold sores), while HSV-2 is generally associated with sexual transmission and genital herpes
In 2020, approximately 520 million people between the ages of 15 and 49 were living with HSV-2 infections and approximately 376 million people worldwide were living with genital HSV-1 infections.
Researchers said: ‘In addition to the painful genital sores, genital herpes is associated with a range of social and psychological adverse consequences, including effects on sexual relationships, quality of life and mental health problems such as depression, anxiety and low self-esteem. esteem.’
Many people with the condition struggle with thoughts such as ‘my life is over’ and ‘no one will ever accept me’. These feelings of shame can prevent people from seeking medical care.
A herpes diagnosis can also affect a woman’s decision to have children because there is a risk that the virus could spread to the baby once it is born, “a debilitating disease of newborns with a high mortality rate” if this is not treated, the researchers said.
Genital herpes is also associated with a threefold increased risk of HIV infection. Scientists believe that the painful lesions explain the higher risk because they create an ideal environment for the HIV virus to multiply.
People diagnosed with genital herpes are treated with prescription antiviral medications to make the outbreaks shorter and less painful, but there is no cure.
While the US is in the midst of a long-term epidemic of STDs, the researchers behind the latest estimates were cautiously optimistic about their findings, which suggested that the incidence of genital herpes is actually showing signs of decline.
They said: ‘The global prevalence of HSV-2 was virtually the same in the 2016 and 2020 rounds of estimation.
‘Given the shifts in underlying demographics over this period (increasing global average age and the changing proportion of the world’s population in each region), the prevalence of HSV-2, adjusted for demographic trends, appears to be slowly declining.’
Their results were published in the journal Sexually transmitted infections.
They attributed the positive sign to “reduced risky sexual behavior after the HIV epidemic, improved awareness of sexually transmitted infections (STDs), better access to HIV/STD services” and/or changes in the way people engage in sexual relationships as a result of changes in economic and economic conditions. social factors.