What Are genital Warts:

Visible genital warts usually are caused by HPV. HPV is a virus and the warts is the outcome, however, remember that not every growth in the genital area is a genital warts caused by HPV.

It must be diagnosed by your medical doctor only. HPV is very common in sexually active men and women and can sometimes have serious health consequences. About 20 million Americans are currently infected, and about 5.5 million people become newly infected each year.

The virus can infect the genital skin and the linings of the vagina, cervix, rectum, and urethra. They come in different shapes and color.  Typically they present like cauliflower growth scattered around randomly, however, it comes in different look that could mimic other skin presentation. For Example: they could look like mole , skin tag, cyst, keratosis, etc.

They come in different shape such as raised, flat, big and small. Many patient have these growth for months and years and they might not even know it. This become alarming when patients see multiple lesion and start thinking that they are facing ongoing and spreading disease before seeking medical attention.

Many lesion occur in male or female genital that could be easily mistaken by genital warts. I have seen many patients in the past that getting  treated for genital warts with significant scar associated with various type of the treatment that had no HPV warts to begin with.

If patient gets labeled with HPV warts then he/she will carry the diagnosis from one doctor to another and all will follow the path of continuity of the care till and experience physician evaluate the patient along this path to change the diagnosis and obviously treatment course. In other words, not every growth is genital warts by HPV.

Location of Warts

This affects both females and males. In addition to the scrotum, the penis, vulva, perineum, and perianal skin, genital warts can also occur on the cervix, vagina, urethra, anus, and mouth. Intra-anal warts are seen predominantly in patients who have had receptive anal intercourse; Anoscopy or anal pap smears might be needed for these patients. These warts are distinct from perianal warts, which can occur in both men and women who have never had anal sex. We diagnose and treat most of those external wart.

Human papilloma virus has tissue affinity. It means that each HPV like to infect certain part of the body and not others.

At many instances, wart started in one part of the body and will extend to other part. For Example, sexual intercourse may infect you and you get genital warts, then you infect yourself and waarts will extend to different area such as scrotal, anal or pubic area. Treating physician must examine the patient carefully of not missing any warts which may contribute to further infection.

During your visit we will fully examine you with different diagnostic tools such as filtered light, Microscope or  Macroscope to make sure we are not missing any warts at time of the treatment.

Physician must have an important goal at the time of the treatment and that would be that there will be no warts left when patient leave the clinic. Area of the infection has its own characteristic. That is important element because the technical approach might be different. Pubic skin is thicker, Scrotum is thinner. Penile skin is keratinized while anal skin is mucosal.

Using protection such as condom will somewhat protect the area in which has been exposed in sexual contact, However, there is no condom coverage on scrotum, pubic, anal, gron, medial legs perineum or anal area.

In many instances I see the condom user patient get genital warts just above condom coverage ring so I could assume that patient usually use protection, but of course no condom would cover all part of sexual organ.