March 4th is International HPV Day

 

What is HPV?
The human papillomavirus (HPV) is a group of viruses that can infect the skin and mucous membranes, particularly around the genitals or anus. There are over 200 different types of HPV, some of which are harmless, while others can cause serious health problems.

There are different types of HPV

  1. low-risk HPV: these types (e.g. HPV 6 and 11) usually cause harmless skin or genital warts.
  2. high-risk HPV: Certain types (e.g. HPV 16 and 18) are associated with an increased risk of cancer, particularly cervical cancer, but also anal cancer, penile cancer and certain head and neck tumors.


How is HPV transmitted?
HPV is mainly transmitted through direct contact with the skin or mucous membranes, especially through sexual contact. As the virus is very contagious, it can also be passed on without sexual intercourse through skin contact (e.g. petting). It is assumed that almost all people become infected with HPV at the start of sexual activity.

Symptoms and diseases
In almost 90% of infections, an HPV infection goes unnoticed, without symptoms and heals itself. In some cases, warts develop in the genital area or on other parts of the body. Infection with a high-risk HPV can cause cell changes that can develop into cancer over a period of years (e.g. cervical cancer, anal cancer).

Prevention of HPV infection
The HPV vaccination protects against infection by the most dangerous HPV types and is particularly recommended for young people before their first sexual contact. Condoms reduce the risk of infection, but do not offer complete protection, as HPV can also be transmitted via skin contact. Therefore, regular check-ups, e.g. at the gynaecologist (smear test on the uterus), are important in order to detect early cell changes. In the case of anal HPV infections, a proctologist (e.g. ZweiChirurgen) should be consulted.