What should i know about the human papillomavirus?

HPV is the sexually transmitted infection More frequently. In fact it is estimated that around 75-80% of the population is infected. However, in most cases the infection will be controlled by our immune system and no injuries will occur.

However, a small percentage of people to whom they transmitted the human papillomavirus, an 10% will develop the disease, whose most frequent expression is the genital warts.

There are many different types of human papillomavirus with the ability to produce genital warts and are classified into two large groups based on the oncogenic potential or ability to produce cancer:

• High-risk viruses, are those that can cause cancer over the years in the region where they infect.

• Low-risk viruses, they only have the ability to form warts and never malignant lesions.

What should I do if I think I have genital warts?

Suspecting to suffer genital warts You should see your doctor to confirm or not the infection. A simple visual examination is sufficient for the diagnosis of most warts, although, on occasion, these could be confused with other dermatological lesions that settle in the genital region or with normal folds of our skin and mucous membranes.

In the case of confirming the disease, a clinical history is made about sexual habits and practices to rule out risk behaviors and the possibility of others sexually transmitted infections, it is not necessary to perform systemic blood tests on all people in whom the infection with the human papillomavirus was found.

Can the spread of this infection be prevented?

It is an easily contagious disease. Human papillomavirus infection spreads throughout the perineal region: pubis, genitals, inguinal region, anal ... and the condom does not cover as much extension, so to prevent the spread of HPV the use of condoms is not effective enough, and although it reduces the risk of transmission, by accumulating multiple sexual relations the vast majority of the population is exposed to this virus.

Currently, there are two types of HPV vaccine. Both types help protect against strains of HPV that are more likely to cause cervical cancer. One type also helps protect against strains of HPV that are more likely to cause genital warts.

Routine HPV vaccination is recommended for the following groups of people:

• boys and girls from 11 to 21 years old;
• women from 22 to 26 years old;
• 22 to 26 year-old men who have a compromised immune system;
• gay and bisexual men.

Vaccines are given as injections (injections in the upper arm) and require 2 to 3 dose, depending on your age. The vaccine is more effective if children receive it before they start having sex.

Vaccines are not curative, so they are not useful for remove warts, nor have they shown that they avoid recurrences once the lesions are solved.