Herpes Doctor

Neonatal herpes, infection of newborns with herpes simplex virus type 1 or type 2—the causes of genital herpes and cold sores—should routinely be reported to health authorities, say experts. In a commentary published in the September issue of the journal Sexually Transmitted Diseases, some of the nation’s leading researchers in herpes infections point out that unlike all comparable health problems in newborns, neonatal herpes is a reportable condition in only 7 states.

As a result, according to Dr. Hunter Handsfield, the lead author, an opportunity is missed for national surveillance that would enhance prevention and public awareness. Handsfield, an expert in sexually transmitted diseases and public health and a professor at the University of Washington Center for AIDS and STD in Seattle, described routine reporting and surveillance as long overdue.

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