Yes, women who are pregnant can become infected with the same sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) as women who are not pregnant. Pregnancy does not provide women or their babies any protection against STDs. The consequences of an STD can be significantly more serious, even life threatening, for a woman and her baby if the woman becomes infected with an STD while pregnant. It is important that women be aware of the harmful effects of STDs and knows how to protect themselves and their children against infection.

Some STDs, such as genital herpes and bacterial vaginosis, are quite common in pregnant women in the United States. Other STDs, notably HIV and syphilis, are much less common in pregnant women. The table below shows the estimated number of pregnant women in the United States who are infected with specific STDs each year.

STDs Estimated Number of Pregnant Women

Bacterial vaginosis 1,080,000

Herpes simplex virus 2 880,000

Chlamydia 100,000

Trichomoniasis 124,000

Gonorrhea 13,200

Hepatitis B 16,000

HIV 6,400

Syphilis Less than 1000