Affiliation: | a Department of Oral Biology, Faculty of Dentistry, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Canada b Department of Periodontology and Preventive Dentistry, Guy's, King's and St. Thomas’ Dental Institute, King's College London, London, UK c Dental Clinical Research, Guy's, King's and St. Thomas’ Dental Institute, King's College London, London, UK |
Abstract: | Objectives: To assess the experience of recrudescent herpes labialis (RHL) before and during early pregnancy. Methods: History of RHL prior to and during the first trimester of pregnancy was obtained from 3738 women attending at 10–15 weeks’ gestation. The influence of age, ethnicity, socioeconomic group, smoking behavior, and alcohol intake on RHL was assessed. Results: 1066 women (28.5%) reported a history of RHL lesions, with reduced incidence of RHL during pregnancy (0.111 lesions/subject per month) compared with outside pregnancy (0.19 lesions/subject per month) (P<0.0001). Those who did report lesions during pregnancy (n=296) experienced them at a higher monthly rate (0.41 lesions/subject per month) than before pregnancy (0.25 lesions/subject per month) (P<0.0001). RHL rate in early pregnancy was related solely to the previous rate of lesion recrudescence (P<0.001). Conclusion: Pregnant women with a history of RHL report reduced incidence of RHL during pregnancy. |