Around 846 million people aged between 15 and 49 are living with genital herpes infections – more than 1 in 5 of this age-group globally – according to new estimates released today. At least 1 person each second – 42 million people annually – is estimated to acquire a new genital herpes infection.

Most of the time, these infections cause no or few symptoms. However, for some people they lead to painful genital sores and blisters that can recur throughout life, causing significant discomfort and often requiring multiple healthcare visits. According to the estimates, more than 200 million people aged 15 to 49 suffered at least one such symptomatic episode in 2020.