Condyloma Information

Condyloma, a disease mostly characterized by genital warts is one of the many sexually transmitted diseases known to man. The virus responsible for this disease is known as Human Papilloma, more commonly as HPV. On the whole, there are more than 40 variants of this virus of which, HPV6 and HPV11 are considered to be more responsible towards the spread of this disease. Practices which cause this disease include oral, anal and genital sex with anyone who is already infected with this virus. Unfortunately, the probability of the spread is very high which leads to almost all such encounters leading to a newly infected person. Duration taken by the virus to start showing its symptoms ranges from 3 - 6 months.

Women are more prone to getting genital warts in and around the vagina, the anus and on the entrance of the uterus, while with males, these can be seen on the opening of the penis and the anus. In the rarest of cases, these may also develop around the mouth (resulting due to oral sex with an infected person). If both the sexes are compared, one would find that both are equally susceptible to getting condyloma but the symptoms in the females would be delayed comparatively. When they do show up, they do so in clusters which are not hard to notice. In certain cases, closer examination may be necessary to correctly diagnose the warts.

A physician or a general practitioner would be in a better position to see and treat the warts. There are some simple parameters which help evaluate the extent of damage these can cause. Someone who has professional experience in this field would be able to tell whether the problem can be rectified just by creams and lotions or through surgery.

It is very important to take this disease seriously mainly because of the following reasons:

a) Condyloma can lead to cervical cancer, one of the most common and untreatable diseases. Untreated warts can be very harmful and if the cancer spreads to other parts of the body, the patient may not be able to recover.

b) Pregnant women may transfer this disease to the new born child thus hampering their future. They may also suffer from other complications during pregnancy which can be detrimental to their health.

c) Infected individuals may lose their ability to bear a child. Due to the genitals being affected, the doctors inhibit the patients from indulging in sexual intercourse.

d) A high chance of passing this disease to others as it is highly contagious and spreads by touch.

While genital warts are a clean indicator of condyloma, it is not necessary that a person who does not have these warts is safe (according to the STD Website. There are a number of times when due to high immunity, a person may never develop these warts. As a precautionary measure, it is best to get vaccinated against this disease and not get involved with multiple sex partners which is one of the major reasons for the constant spread of this disease.