Last week, we reported on a newborn in Iowa who died days after being kissed. The baby contracted meningitis HSV1, which can be passed from someone with a cold sore.

Since both her parents tested negative for the virus, doctors said the infant likely got it through a kiss from someone else.

According to the CDC, babies less than a month old are more likely to develop severe illness because of their fragile immune systems.

Fox 2 News at 11 invited Dr. Rachel Orscheln, a Washington University pediatric infectious disease physician at St. Louis Children’s Hospital, to help explain what first-time parents need to know to protect their newborns.