Genital wart treatment is generally a long-term treatment. However, with each procedure performed in the treatment of warts, the HPV virus load decreases and the formation of new condyloma foci is prevented as much as possible.
In general, except for cases such as immune deficiency, every genital wart patient gets rid of warts completely within a certain period of time. Especially the cleaning of the genital area should be done by trying not to bleed the genital warts that have been repeated or are present.
Each new wart that bleeds during or after cleaning increases the possibility of the HPV virus infecting other areas and spreading at least partially. Genital hair should be kept as short as possible or, if necessary, removed with a machine, taking care not to damage the warts.
It should not be forgotten that lesions may recur after genital wart treatment. If you have a wart or flesh-like lesion in your genital area that you suspect may reoccur, you should consult a doctor immediately and be examined.
In the early stages of genital warts, lesions caused by HPV warts can be completely cured of this disease with a few sessions of treatment. Long-lasting sessions and months of treatment may be required for common warts that have been neglected and spread throughout the genital area.
Show new lesions in your genital area that you cannot identify to a specialist as soon as possible, without bleeding or touching them too much. Situations such as neglect and disregard make treatment difficult and prolong the recovery period.
Regardless of the type of treatment, 50 to 60% of genital warts recur within the first 6 months, and about 30% of the cases experience spontaneous regression of the vulva. However, factors such as complete hair removal in the genital area, use of razors and low body resistance increase the recurrence of genital warts.
In all treatments, the probability of genital wart recurrence is around 50-60% within the first 6 years. With the freezing method, there is a 60-90% chance of getting rid of warts within 3 months. Mostly, genital wart infection is temporary and clears up within 2 years.
Patients treated for Genital Warts are required to restrict sexual intercourse for 1-2 weeks, depending on the treatment method. When the tissues are completely healed, it would be appropriate to continue sexual life, preferably using a condom. Genital wart treatment does not negatively affect sexual life in the long term.
After genital treatment, the patient’s warts recur within approximately the first 6 months, and there is no superiority among the treatment methods, such as burning, freezing, acid treatment.
Laser surgery is more effective, but its cost is higher than other methods. After treatment, in 90% of patients, the process regresses within 2 years and relapse does not occur.
Genital warts are burned with electrocautery, which may recur within 6 months to 1 year in some cases. However, the number of recurrent cases is low.
There are some issues that the patient should pay attention to after the treatment and they are as follows; If there is a carrier partner, a condom should be used, genital cleanliness should be paid attention for two months, pubic hair should not be removed, waxing-like procedures should not be performed to open the hair follicle, baths, saunas, pools, waxing salons should not be visited, genital materials used by the person should not be used by others, the patient should not be used for a period of 1 year. should be kept under surveillance.
It is important for the person to control himself and have health checks at regular intervals. The HPV vaccine includes types 6 and 11, which can cause warts. One of the effective protection methods is to get HPV vaccine between the ages of 12-26.
With all this; Avoiding polygamy is one of the best ways to protect yourself from genital warts. Using a condom during sexual intercourse can also be protective. However, using a condom during sexual intercourse does not provide 100% protection.
Prof. Dr. Gökhan Koç graduated from Gazi University Faculty of Medicine in 2000. After his graduation, he worked as a research assistant in the urology clinic at Tepecik Training and Research Hospital for 5 years and became a specialist doctor in 2007. He currently provides services in urological surgery in İzmir.