How Is It Spread?
HPV can be spread during anal, oral or vaginal sex by direct skin contact. During childbirth, HPV can be spread to the newborn infant. After exposure to the virus, genital warts may not appear from months to years. This sometimes makes it difficult to know where or from whom you contracted the virus. You can carry the virus and actually never see the symptom of genital warts. Some warts can lie just under the skin and not be seen or felt. A single wart can be small and occur alone, or they can multiply and clump together to form a large cauliflower looking growth that can be brown or gray, or pink, or white. Genital warts may be painless or they can be uncomfortably itchy.

Men may have genital warts anywhere on the scrotum, penis or urethra. Women can have them in the vagina, on the vulva (vaginal lips), and on the cervix (entrance to the uterus). Both women and men can have genital warts  on the thighs, anywhere in the pubic area and on, or in the anus.

How Is It Diagnosed?
Genital warts are diagnosed by their obvious appearance on the genitals. But an obvious appearance is not always the case. The warts can be hidden just under the surface of the skin, or in the case of a woman, inside the vagina, or in a man inside the urethra. For women, an abnormal pap smear could be the first sign of HPV. If this is the case, a special magnifying glass called a colopscope is used to examine the cervix and upper vagina. For men, genital warts are often hidden in the urethra and cannot be seen or felt. An examination with an endoscope will confirm their presence.
 

What Are The Complications?
In men, the long term effects of HPV are not known. But that is not the case for women. It is known that HPV can cause changes to the cells in the cervix that can lead to cervical cancer. Changes to the cervix can be detected by regular pap tests. Women that smoke have a higher rate of cancer of the cervix.

How Are Genital Warts Treated?
There are several treatments that will will bring relief to your symptoms. However, there is no known cure. Even though the symptoms (warts) disappear, the virus remains in your system. Treatments that are doctor prescribed and prescription medications can sometimes be long, frustrating and costly. These include cryotherapy (freezing), lazer therapy (burning), loop electrosurgical excision (electric current), interferon injections and prescription medications. These treatments can cause depigmentation and scarring with prescription meds being at best 55% effective. Because of these spotty results more people are opting for proven results with natural treatments such as the use of organic medicinal extracts with anti-viral properties, essential oils, and homeopathic supplements. The best companies on the internet utilizing natural, organic methods are reviewed on this site.

What About Sexual Partners?
HPV is extremely contagious and even if no warts can be seen, it can be easily spread. When HPV is detected in one partner, the other partner (or partners) should be tested. This is especially important for women. Women who have been in contact with HPV should have a pap smear on a regular basis, even as often as every 6 months.
Condoms may offer some protection during intercourse.

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