subject: Genital Warts - Basic Facts About Genital Warts [print this page] The first common question people ask about genital warts is, how did I get them? The next is often, how can I get rid of them? Maybe knowing the answers to these questions will give you a sound mind to get back to the things in life that are important to you and allow you to stop worrying about genital warts. First, genital warts are transmitted through many kinds of sexual contact. Oral sex with an infected person can lead to lesions in the mouth and down the throat. Anal and vaginal sex can result in outbreaks of genital warts inside the anus or vagina.
Just rubbing an infected genital area against an uninfected one, even if there is no outbreak at the time, carries a high risk of transmission. The virus that causes genital warts is HPV, human papillomavirus. This virus is incredibly contagious. It can spread on surfaces and through the air. It can spread from manual, hand to hand contact. It can spread through blood transfusions and needles, from an infected mother to her unborn child, and through exchange of saliva.
After a person has been infected, there can be a period of latency in which no growths appear. This period can be particularly dangerous because this is when the HPV can incubate in the body and grow stronger. The stronger it is becomes, the harder it is to treat. When outbreaks do appear, they can be in many different shapes, sizes, and colors. Genital warts may be flat and a color close the color of the skin. They may be rounder and more bulbous, and they may be red colored, pink colored, or even gray colored. They often spread in clusters that resemble scales or mushrooms.
These clusters can get quite large and they can cover areas on the body up to several inches in diameter. Even though genital warts may not cause the infected person any physical pain, they can be uncomfortable and cause irritation, and they often cause shame or embarrassment in the infected person. There is no need to feel embarrassed because millions of people are infected with this virus. It is the fastest spreading sexually transmitted disease out there today. The most important thing is that you see a doctor as soon as possible if you think you may have genital warts. A diagnosis will put you on the road to treatment and remission.
