 Since at-risk women can now be accurately identified by new and more accurate type-specific serologic tests, effective prevention strategies should be instituted to minimize risk of transmission to the neonate. The first obligation is to diagnose who is at risk. The highest risk is that of neonatal transmission from a mother experiencing a primary genital HSV-1 or HSV-2 infection in late pregnancy. Studies indicate that approximately 1.3 of women seroconvert during pregnancy and, among those who do, the risk of neonatal transmission is as high as 30 - 50 Brown 1991. Conversely, the rate of neonatal transmission from women with recurrent genital herpes infection is low 1 Brown, 1991, 1997; Smith, 1998; Arvin, 1986; Fonnest, 1997. However, since genital herpes is so common, the total number of cases of neonatal herpes from women with recurrent disease remains high Fleming, 1997; STD Guidelines, 2002. Once a mother is identified as being infected with HSV-2, the health care providers - both pediatrician and obstetrician - can be alerted to the potential risk of neonatal herpes. 