Genital Warts Advisor

Discover the benefits of Wartrol Genital Warts Relief

Currently, there is no efficient way of curing HPV, but methods are known for removing genital warts. These include special chemical solutions, cryodestruction or surgical removal. Application of each method depends on the size of the wart and its location. Even though some methods might require up to several months (3 and more), it’s not rare for warts to recur due to the virus remaining in the body.

Genital warts chemical treatment (solutions, gels and creams)

Podophyllin

This therapeutic solution is extracted from plants and, for the effect to take place, needs to have direct contact with the affected area. The effect of podophylin is based on slowing down and even suspending the development of cells of the skin. As it can seriously harm the health if not used properly, podophyllin must be administered by qualified staff; as for Vaselin, its purpose is to protect the area around the genital wart from getting burnt or badly irritated. You must rinse the area with plenty of water 4 hours after the application.

You might be required to go through the period of treatment as long as 2-3 weeks, during which it will be necessary to show up in the clinic. Notice that podophyllin can be applied only if you have external genital warts. To prevent collateral effects from taking place, you need to think about another method, in case the one you chose isn’t efficient. This substance, although applied locally, can have negative impact on your health in the long term. Collateral effects of podophyllin include reddened and\or irritated skin, confusion and vertigo; harmul effects for nervous system are also possible. In fact, podophyllin is not advised for application by many doctors.

The use of podophyllin during pregnancy is not recommended.
According to the results of the research the probability of the genital wart recurring after application of podophyllin varies from 40% to 60%.

Podophyllotoxin

Podophyllotoxin is the active component of podophyllin. This component comes in solution that can be applied at home and is not recuired to be rinsed afterwards.

However, you will need a prescription from your doctor to purchase podophyllotoxin. It’s generally used for not very large genital warts; the period of treatment is three days, with 2 daily applications. In case the therapy has not been successful and the results have not appeared during the 4 days following the treatment, you might consider applying podophyllotoxin for three days, resting on the fourth day, such treatment going on for a month, if necessary. Make sure you ask your doctor for all the necessary instructions before using this solution.

The collateral effects of podophyllotoxin include mildly irritated and/or sore skin. If you are not sure you understand this method of treatment completely, contact a qualified professional (genitourinary medicine clinic staff, pharmacist) before you apply the solution.

The use of podophyllotoxin during pregnancy is not recommended.
No exact data on recurrency rate has been received . According to different studies, it can be between 10% and 90%.

Trichloroacetic acid (TCA)

TCA is known for its prompt action and lack of collateral effects. You must have it applied by qualified staff, as its effect is based on burning the tissue of the wart. As TCA is an acid, you can feel painful burning for several minutes, as the genital wart is being eliminated. Just like in the case of podophyllin, you should make sure the skin around the wart is protected by applying Vaseline.

The safety of trichloroacetic for pregnant women has not been completely verified.
The probability of genital warts growing back after the treatment reaches 35% .

Interferons

This is a family of proteins that prevent the growth of the virus. Interferons can be used in the form of cream, gel or injection solution. This method isn’t used very often due to the controversy over their effectiveness and reliability.

Imiquimod

The effect of imiquimod is based on increasing the immunity strength allowing it to combat HPV. It doesn’t boost the whole immune system of your body, but the area on which it has been used. This remedy is a cream that should not be used for internal genital warts, as it might irritate mucous membrane.

It’s normally required up to 3-4 months for imiquimod to have its full effect. You need to apply it 3 times a week, making sure you rinse it throughly after 6-10 hours. The most common collateral effect is irritated skin; if this happens, make sure you contact your pharmacist or doctor immediately to receive further instructions.

The use of imiquimod during pregnancy is not recommended.
The probability of the wart recurring following the therapy is between 13% and 20%. However, this data still needs to be verified by a number of consecutive researches.

5-Flourouracil

As this remedy demonstrated powerful collateral effects in many patients, it is not recommended for the genital warts therapy.

Freezing Therapy

Cryodestruction (cryosurgery)

Cryodestruction is the medical treatment during which HPV cells are destroyed by quick freezing, with application of liquid nitrogen or nitrous oxide on the growth itself. The tissue of the wart gets destroyed almost instantly. It’s possible to use cryodestruction method for the warts located internally, as well as externally. The treatment lasts up to 15 minutes, the amount of time depending to how many warts there are, and how big they are. This procedure can appear to be quite painful, that’s why you should consider the use of local anaesthetic to soothe the pain.

For patients with warts in vagina, cervix or anus it’s common to experience some discharge following the procedure. This is a good sign of your body successfully healing. It’s recommended to avoid using tampons in the next menstruation; also, you have to make sure there is no more discharge before you have penetrative sexual intercourse, which might require up to a month.

This method is considered one of the most efficient and safe ways for pregnant women.
The probability of recurrence in case of cryodestruction therapy is 10% – 40%.

Surgical removal of genital warts

Surgical removal of genital warts is a method that you can resort to, if other treatment strategies appeared to be inefficient. All these methods are painful and, therefore, involve local or even general anaesthesia. Certain kinds of surgeries must be carried out in the clinic.

Methods of surgical removal of genital warts include:

Excision (physical removal): You can resort to this method in case previous attempts failed and your genital warts are big in size and located in a reachable place. This surgery usually doesn’t involve stiching or bleeding (if it happens, heat it used to stop the haemorrhage). Following the operation, you can experience soreness of the area, scarring of the tissue is also possible. If you notice no improvement in the condition of your skin, make sure you contact your doctor immediately.

The recurrence rate of genital warts after excision is about 20%.

Diathermy (electrocautery): involves local heating of the body tissues affected with warts with electric current. Electrically heated metal is used, burning the wart out and producing the smell of burning flesh.

25% is an average probability of genital warts growing back after electrocautery.

LEEP (Loop Electrosurgical Excision Procedure) is a comparatively innovative treatment method, in which special wire is used. It eliminates the wart instead of burning it off. A modification of LEEP can be used for removal of cells with abnormalities – LLETZ.

Laser therapy: makes genital warts literally vanish into thin air. The treatment involves vaporizing the wart, which can be accompanied by smoke and loud noise of the laser machine. Because of very high precision of this method it’s often used to remove genital warts in areas difficult to access. Another advantage of laser therapy is its low impact on the skin around the wart.

The probability of the wart growing back can vary from 10% to 40%.

The period following surgical removal

The most common recommendation is abstinence from sex for 15-30 days. It’s quite normal to have discharge of matter during several days folloiwng the operation. It’s recommended to avoid using tampons in the next menstruation; also you have to make sure there is no more discharge before you have sexual intercourse.

In case you experience unpleasant condition and notice the location of the surgery has become unusually irritated or painful, make sure you contact your doctor or the hospital immediately, as these symptoms might indicate consecutive infection.

I’m pregnant and I have genital warts. What should I do?

It’s quite common for genital warts to increase in size and number. There might be two possible reasons for that: condition of your immunity or high level of the hormone called progesterone, which is influenced by fetation. Genital warts are not likely to cause any problems connected with carrying of the pregnancy or child delivery; however, if the genital warts are too big, you should consider getting rid of them. The methods recommended for pregnant women are cryodestruction and surgical removal, as these will have no impact on the fetus. In some rare cases when it’s impossible to apply either of these methods, caesarean operation should be considered.

There have also been a few reports of the human papilloma virus being transmitted to the baby through warts on the parturient canal. Although this is very rare, exposure of the baby to HPV might implicate throat warts. Throat warts per se are not indication for caesarian operation; however, they might very rarely lead to breathing problems in the child.