If A Woman Had Protective Sex With A Man Who Has Herpes, Would She Still Get The Disease?
If the person infected was having/just about/finished having an outbreak then most likely because Herpes is known as a “skin to skin” virus. The condom might not cover the area infected by the virus. However if the person with Herpes was not having an outbreak, or was about to have an outbreak or just finished having an outbreak, then the virus isn’t present yet on the skin so the chances are slim. Having said that it is possible for some people to pass the virus from skin to mucous membranes without there being signs or symptoms of genital herpes, this is called asymptomatic shedding. But this shedding is higher in the first year after infection and if you have frequent outbreaks. Because Herpes is a skin to skin virus you do not need to have sex to catch it as the virus enters the body through cracks in the skin or membranes in the moist lining of the rectum, mouth, vagina, urethra and under the foreskin; therefore you can catch it by close genital contact without penetration.
