HPV-- Genital Warts
Human Papillomavirus and You! - Part 1

Have you ever noticed that HIV seems to magnify the effects of even the most minor health conditions? Colds that last weeks instead of days, headaches which used to just slow you down now make your head feel like it will explode? We don’t yet know all of the ways HIV affects our body but we are starting to learn how HIV teamed up with other infection or viruses greatly increases risk for serious illness. You may have heard of Human Papillomavirus (HPV) the virus that causes genital warts, or you may need to hear about it now. Human Papillomavirus has been shown in studies to increase the risk in women of developing cervical cancer no matter what your HIV status. Now we have more information about the additional health concerns HPV causes for women living with HIV. Before we talk about those let’s, cover the basics about HPV.

What is HPV?
Human Papillomavirus is a sexually transmitted disease that is very common in the US (much more common than HIV). It is estimated that about 40 million people in the US are infected with one of the over 60 types of HPV, and these numbers seem to be increasing. Over one-third of the types of HPV can be spread sexually and many types can cause genital warts. Furthermore, researchers feel that over half of the women infected with HPV have no obvious symptoms.

Genital Warts.
Genital warts are spread through sexual contact and are very easy to catch from an infected partner. Approximately two-thirds of persons who have sex with an infected partner will develop HPV usually within 3 months. Warts can grow on the vulva, labia, inside the vagina, on the cervix or around the anus of women who are exposed to HPV. You can also get warts in your mouth if you have had oral sex with an infected partner.

Warts can be very small and hard to see even though they usually grow in groups. They can accumulate into large masses and eventually develop fleshy, cauliflower-like clumps. They can also disappear on their own but this does not mean your HPV has been cured. So if you think you have had genital warts talk to your health care provider.

What test can tell you if you have HPV?
Most of the time providers identify genital warts based on a visual examination (they simply see them but they have to know to look for them first). It is very important that women living with HIV who have genital warts also be checked for HPV infection of the cervix. Sometimes a provider can check for cervical infection by performing a coloscopy (a magnifying device is used to view the vagina and uterine cervix). Providers may also take a small sample of tissue from the cervix and look at that under a microscope - this is called a biopsy. Pap smears are another way of determining if a woman has HPV. A Pap smear is a test that also takes tissue samples from the uterine cervix and looks at them under a microscope, primarily to detect cervical cancer.

That's all for now. Look for part two in the next issue of the Babes' Perspective in which we will discuss treatments for HPV and concerns for positive women.

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