Available Treatments for HPV

HPV is one of the STDs that there is no cure for. To someone who has recently been diagnosed with human papilloma virus this news can be very discouraging. It’s important to understand though that many cases of HPV infection will simply disappear by themselves. In fact, many people who are infected never realize they are before the disease has left their body.

One of the symptoms of HPV is genital warts. HPV treatment does include tending to the warts in an effort to not only remove them but prevent reoccurrence.

There are several approaches that your physician may take in treating genital warts, these may include:

* A topical method. There are several creams available that work to remove the warts. These types of HPV treatments are seen as very important mainly due to the fact that genital warts are very contagious. They can easily be spread to another person or to other parts of your body. The creams vary in strength and it’s advisable to follow the directions given to a tee.

* Freezing. Depending on the size of the genital warts and their location, your doctor may prefer as part of your HPV treatments to freeze the warts. This is generally more effective, in terms of short-term results than a topical solution would be. The drawback can be that more than one application is needed to fully remove the root of the wart.

* Burning. Warts can be removed through a process of cauterization. This occurs when the doctor uses a small tool to burn the warts. The results with these types of HPV treatments are generally quick and very effective.

* Surgery. This is a rare occurrence and is only warranted if the warts are either large in size or resistant to other types of treatment.

In the case of women with women who are infected with the virus, their HPV treatments involve a bit more. In the case of genital warts, these will naturally be treated. However, some women become aware that they have HPV through a Pap smear.

Depending on how the virus is affecting their cervix they may have to undergo HPV treatments. If there is a risk of pre-cancerous or cancer cells being present, those cells will need to be removed, most likely through surgery. The presence of HPV in a woman’s body may increase her risk of developing cervical cancer so doctors are very aggressive in treating any abnormal cells that appear.

[ Print This Page ]