Genital Warts (STI)

Overview

Condylomata acuminata, anogenital warts, venereal warts, and anal warts, commonly known and grouped as genital warts, are warts present on the genitals of a person, caused by certain types of HPV (human papillomavirus).

Genital warts result as a symptom of genital HPV infection, although only as little as 1 to 5% of those infected will actually develop the warts.

The HPV infection is transmitted through direct sexual contact of the skin, during oral, genital, or anal sex.

Genital Warts (STI)

Symptoms

In men, genital warts present themselves typically on the genital or penis area, including most commonly the tip of the penis, but also on the shaft of the penis, on the scrotum, or around or inside the anus. In women, genital warts tend to occur either inside or outside of the vagina, or on the cervix, which is the opening to the womb.

The appearance of genital warts is usually in clusters, and varies in size from very small to spreading into large masses affecting a large area.

Treatments

Although the HPV infection cannot be cured, genital warts can be treated by the use of gels or creams. The most popular are Condyline (a gel) and Warticon (a cream), which contain Podophyllotoxin. They are applied directly to the genital warts twice a day for 3 consecutive days and can be repeated once a week for up to 4 weeks if necessary.