Genital Warts and their Treatment

Genital wart is a sexually transmitted disease and the result of a viral infection caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV). The virus can be obtained through vaginal or anal sex. Extremely rare but the disease can also infect the mouth or the throat if a person has oral sex with someone having the disease. Infection with genital HPV does not necessarily imply that a person will develop genital warts. It is estimated that only 1% to 5% of infected persons develop genital warts. The disease can lay dormant for years but if a person having dormant genital HPV has sex there is a high probability of passing the disease to the partner.

Genital warts have the appearance of clusters on the genitals. They can be small or large. For women, they can occur on the exterior or interior of the vigina from the cervix to the uterus. They can also appear along and inside the anus area. In men, their presence can be noticed on the tip of the penus and along or inside the anus.

Infection with genital HPV does not necessarily mean that the person will have genital warts. In many cases, there are no visible signs of an infection and no symptoms and the virus may simply be eliminated by the body natural immune system.  In other cases, the appearance of warts can take the form of bumps, clusters on the genitals. There are no symptoms as such as genital warts are painless but they can cause itchiness and inflamation. Genitals warts do not cause cancer but some types of HPV are known to cause both genital warts and cervix cancer. For a person to have cancer, it depends on the type of genital HPV he is infected with. Some viruses will only cause genital warts while others can cause both genital warts and cancer.

Prevention against genital warts can be done wih a vaccine which protects against HPV types 16, 18, 6 and 11. Genital warts are often caused by HPV type 6 and 11 while types 16 and 18 are the cause of cervical cancer. Taking the vaccine is only a preventive measure and is not therapeutic. For it to be effective, it must be administered ideally at the start of sexual activity.

Most cure for genital warts are for eliminating the warts and reducing infectivity.it is most advised to obtain medical treatment. Most doctors will verify if the type of HPV infection is not cancerous. Genital warts treatment varies and each method can be effective in some cases while proving ineffective in others. Some of the most common treatment methods include:

• The use of cream solution applied on the affected area. There are many different solutions that can be applied depending on the prescription of the doctor. Podofilox can be applied on the affected area. It can sometime cause skin erosion unlike Aldara which causes less iritation but may cause flu-like symptoms. Veregen, an ointment obtained from green tea can also often be prescribed by doctors

• Cryosurgery which uses nitrogen to freeze the warts. This method can be a bit painful and can sometimes cause blisters

• The use of laser can provide a solution if other methods proves ineffective.

• Surgery is also another solution often used for very large warts. Using surgery often increases the risk of scarring

• Other cream solutions are often available. Warts can sometimes be stubborn and resist treatment. Some treatment may prove a lot more effective than others. Laser treatment and surgery are often considered as last resort if the application of cream and other solutions do not seem to yield results.

In most cases, genital warts if left untreated will disappear but it is not certain how long it may take. Some may disappear after a few months others can take years. Some may even grow in size and number before finally disappearing. Having safe sex by using a condom is the most effective method of protecting against contracting genital warts especially if you have more than one sexual partner.