Then along came shockingly lethal HIV, and herpes faded into the background. But the so-called Scarlet H is far from gone. That means the disease is 30 percent more widespread now than it was in the late 1970s. That's largely because the vast majority of herpes patients don't even know they have the disease, either because they don't recognize the warning signs or because they have no symptoms. When people have herpes simplex virus 2, they may notice small, painful bumps or blisters in the genital area and feel a burning sensation.
Some people have more serious flu-like symptoms, fever and lower back pain.
For many, the virus lies dormant in their bodies for years, reactivating during times of stress or for other reasons. For example, the authors of the Journal article note, condom use doubled between 1979 and 1988. But condoms, while recommended as a barrier to herpes, don't always work. People who know they have herpes, experts say, should avoid having sex during an outbreak and use latex condoms at all other times. The largest increase in herpes cases, for example, has been among young white teenagers.