Genital Herpes: Beliefs and Common Misconceptions Among Young Women

Background: Genital herpes (HSV) is exceedingly common in the United States and women are disproportionally affected with prevalence rates (20.9%) nearly twice that of men (11.5%). More than 80% of people with HSV do not know they are infected; yet HSV can still be transmitted to others. Of great concern is the increased risk of HIV acquisition among those infected with genital herpes. Understanding women’s beliefs about HSV is foundational to developing public health programs to prevent this incurable infection.

Objectives: To examine young women’s beliefs about genital herpes and examine the correlates of those beliefs.

Methods: 302 women (aged 18-24) were recruited from four women’s health clinics and one university classroom. Participants completed the HSV Representations of Sexually Transmitted Diseases (RoSTD) instrument and demographic survey.

Results: Nearly all women (98%) believed that HSV would result in genital sores and 68% believed they could tell if their sexual partner had HSV. Most (89%) understood the longevity of HSV, however 30% believed that they could take a pill to get rid of the infection, and 15% indicated that it was likely they would die from HSV. Negative beliefs about the psychosocial impact of HSV were common as 95% indicated they would be depressed and 90% indicated concern about sex and partner notification. Compared to those who had been tested for STDs, those who had never been tested believed HSV had more symptoms.

Conclusions: Young women have misconceptions about HSV, particularly regarding the symptomatology and the role of HSV medication. Noteworthy concerns about the negative psychosocial consequences of an HSV diagnosis were also raised.

Implications for Programs, Policy, and Research: STD care providers must recognize the common misconceptions women have about HSV as well as the psychosocial concerns in order to target educational and counseling messages to address these beliefs.