Herpes infection occurs in less than 1 percent of births, and the development of meningitis from HSV-1 infection is incredibly rare. The infection escalated into viral meningitis, killing the baby. Since both parents tested negative for herpes infections, authorities suggest that someone with a current or recent cold sore likely kissed the baby, infecting her with HSV-1. In July 2017, an Iowa newborn contracted HSV-1 from someone who visited her shortly after birth. But when a newborn is infected with herpes, serious and sometimes fatal complications can occur.

While outbreaks can be painful or unsightly in adults, they pass. Both of these viruses can cause significant infections in newborns.

HSV-1 also can cause genital lesions through oral sex. But more than half of adults in America have been infected at some point in their lives with HSV-1, the herpes virus that commonly affects the mouth in the form of cold sores. Genital herpes typically is caused by HSV-2, a herpes virus strain. About one in six Americans ages 14 to 49 has genital herpes, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.