catharine101

The flat out, harsh answer to this is "everyone". But I don't think we need to be quite so literal...

If you are talking about genital herpes, it's a sexually transmitted disease. If you are sexually active in any way (oral sex, touching your partner, or full intercourse) you MIGHT be putting yourself at risk. The important thing to keep in mind is that's it's not having sex that is the risk. It's having sex with an infected partner that CAN be a risk. When you get involved with someone to the extent you are considering having any sexual contact, you might consider asking them if they have ever been tested for herpes. Don't ask if they've ever been tested for STD's (although of course that's important too) because a herpes test isn't included with those tests. The person must ask specifically for a herpes test. If you have sex with someone who has herpes you are at risk, but it is by no means guaranteed that you will contract the virus. Using a condom helps reduce the risk. No sex during outbreaks of course...

If you are talking about oral herpes, that's perhaps even more complicated. Many people aren't aware that cold sores are oral herpes. As a result, a kiss from your maiden aunt on the cheek could result in the transfer of the virus. That's exactly how so many kids end up with cold sores. Again though, if you aren't in contact with someone who has an active cold sore, the risk is pretty low.