Characteristics of the study population (n = 39)
| Characteristic | Number (%), mean (SD), or median (range) |
|---|---|
| GH, genital herpes; RGHQoL, Recurrent Genital Herpes Quality of Life Scale. | |
| *Among individuals with current sexual partner (n = 35). | |
| †Question posed only to women (n = 19); one individual did not respond to question. | |
| Age (SD) | 39.0 (8.7) |
| Female (%) | 20 (51.3) |
| College/university graduate (%) | 29 (77.3) |
| HSV support group member (%) | 35 (89.7) |
| Years since diagnosis (range) | 7 (0.5–24) |
| Recurrences in past year (range) | 3 (0–18) |
| RGHQoL score (range) | 20 (1–57) |
| Antiviral drugs | |
| Ever used antiviral drugs (%) | 30 (76.9) |
| Ever used suppressive therapy (%) | 20 (51.3) |
| Currently using antiviral drugs (%) | 13 (33.3) |
| Ever hospitalised as a result of GH (%) | 2 (5.1) |
| Current sex partner has GH* (%) | 13 (37.1) |
| Experienced partnership break up as a result of GH (%) | 10 (26.4) |
| Told GH could adversely affect childbearing† (%) | 11 (57.9) |
| Pregnancy complicated by GH† (%) | 3 (15.8) |