No association between antepartum serologic and genital tract evidence of herpes simplex virus-2 coinfection and perinatal HIV-1 transmission.
OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this study was to assess the risk of perinatal HIV-1 transmission in women who are coinfected with herpes simplex virus-2 (HSV-2).


METHODS
We performed a nested case-control study of 26 women whose HIV-1 was transmitted to their infants and 52 control subjects whose HIV-1 was not transmitted. We assessed antepartum serologic evidence of HSV-2 by HSV-2 serostatus and genital tract evidence of HSV-2 by presence of HSV-2 DNA.


RESULTS
There was no significant association between antepartum serologic evidence of HSV-2 coinfection and the risk of perinatal HIV-1 transmission. There was also no association between antepartum genital tract evidence of HSV-2 coinfection and risk of perinatal HIV-1 transmission.


CONCLUSIONS
Women who were infected with HIV-1 with antepartum serologic and genital tract evidence of HSV-2 coinfection did not appear to have an increased risk of perinatal HIV-1 transmission. However, further investigations are needed to assess HSV-2 reactivation and the risk of perinatal HIV-1 transmission at the time of delivery.
Chen
Katherine T
KT
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Epidemiology, Columbia University, New York, NY 10032, USA. ktc10@columbia.edu
Tuomala
Ruth E
RE
Chu
Clara
C
Huang
Meei-Li
ML
Watts
D Heather
DH
Zorrilla
Carmen D
CD
Paul
Mary
M
Hershow
Ron
R
Larussa
Philip
P
D000328:Adult; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D015897:Comorbidity; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000635:transmission*; D015497:HIV-1; D006558:Herpes Genitalis / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000276:immunology; D018258:Herpesvirus 2, Human / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D018445:Infectious Disease Transmission, Vertical; D018743:Perinatal Care; D011247:Pregnancy; D011251:Pregnancy Complications, Infectious; D011256:Pregnancy Outcome; D012307:Risk Factors