Credit Image: Peter Dazeley/Getty Images
What You Need to Understand About HPV, Including Its Symptoms and Treatment Options Available
One of the most common sexually transmitted conditions in the United States is human papillomavirus. It is also estimated that approximately eighty percent of sexually active people usually end up contracting HPV at some point in their life. Even though human papillomavirus infection usually goes away with time, certain virus strains can increase your risk of suffering from cervical cancer. That is why Orlando HPV offers HPV testing, vaccinations, and management to ensure you are not at risk of contracting cervical cancer.
What Is HPV?
HPV is an abbreviation of the human papillomavirus, a group of viruses that usually affect your skin. In most cases, one can contract the virus through skin-to-skin contact with someone who has the virus. Typically, over two hundred different strains of HPV exist, with most of them not being harmful and usually go away on their own with time. Some of the strains typically cause genital warts, after seeing them, you may not want to become infected, even though such strains are usually considered low risk. Other strains of HPV usually change the cells of your cervix and thus increase your risk of developing cervical cancer and are grouped as high-risk strains.
Does HPV Cause Symptoms?
It is essential to note that HPV does not cause any symptoms, and it is asymptomatic. However, you might end up having genital warts after being infected with low-risk strains of HPV, and you might end up not developing other symptoms significantly if you are affected with a high-risk strain of HPV. One can know they are infected with a high-risk HPV by being tested, the results turn positive when they have this strain.
How Do You Get Tested for HPV?
One usually gets tested for HPV using swabs to collect cells from your cervix and have them tested. Generally, you can be tested for HPV during your pap smear. While testing for HPV, the care providers usually look for abnormal cells, which are usually an early sign of cervical cancer.
How Is HPV Treated?
Typically, there is no known cure for HPV. Still, if you get the virus, the health care specialist usually monitors your cervical cells for any changes by encouraging you to have regular pap smears and provide any treatment if need be. In case any abnormalities are noted, the doctor may recommend a colonoscopy. A colonoscopy is an in-office procedure performed to help examine your cervical tissue using a lighted magnifying device. Therefore, if any abnormal tissues are seen, a biopsy is done, and the sample is sent to the laboratory for further studies.
Do You Need to Get the HPV Vaccine?
The answer is yes because most care specialists usually recommend that everyone between the age of nine and forty-five get the vaccine. The HPV vaccine will not protect you from all strains of this virus, but it provides protection against the strains that usually cause cervical cancer and genital warts. It is also crucial to note that for some between the age of fifteen and forty-five, the vaccine is always given in three shots within six months.
Therefore, to learn more about HPV or how to get tested, call or visit Contemporary Women’s Care today.