Human papillomavirus (HPV) is a very common disease that neither children nor adults are protected against.It is quite easy to get this infection because its cells are around us and remain alive for a long time without a carrier.
In addition, it can be imperceptibly located in the human body and will not show itself until a certain moment.All this time, the infected person is a carrier of the disease, so HPV is transmitted both to people close to him and to his family members.
Papillomavirus is a provocateur of the development of oncology
Almost every third person develops small growths on their body that initially seem harmless and harmless.When such tumors are detected, the first reaction of the patient is to tear or remove them by traditional methods.
In fact, such actions often cause irreparable damage to health, because the correct removal of papillomas can lead to active proliferation of epithelial tissue.This helps HPV to spread rapidly in the body and in some cases even causes skin cells to mutate and later turn into a cancerous tumor.
To date, scientists have divided all types of papillomavirus into three categories:
- safe;
- low tumors;
- is highly oncogenic.
These groups include certain types of diseases that have their own level of probability of growth becoming a cancerous tumor.When a virus with low and high oncogenicity enters the body, it penetrates the genome of epithelial cells, changes their structure and causes the appearance of a malignant tumor.In this case, the patient requires immediate professional treatment, because if this problem is ignored, everything can end in death.It is not worth fighting the disease independently, because without the help of a specialist it will still be impossible to cure.
It is important!In medical practice, there are precedents when a patient is diagnosed with a safe form of papillomavirus, but papillomas still turn into oncology under the influence of external factors, more often due to mechanical damage to growth.
How is human papillomavirus transmitted?
All kinds of oncogenic and harmless diseases spread in the same way.HPV can be transmitted in one of three ways:
- sexual contact with an infected person;
- transmission of infection from mother to child during pregnancy (vertical method);
- household transmission.
The presence of lesions on the skin increases the likelihood of contracting the disease.Through small scrapes or scratches, viral cells quickly penetrate deep into the skin and begin to spread throughout the body.In addition, the following factors can increase the chance of infection:
- weakening of the protective functions of the body (seasonal or postoperative);
- the presence of intestinal dysbiosis or a violation of the normal microflora in the vagina;
- avitaminosis;
- alcohol addiction;
- sexually transmitted diseases, especially gonorrhea, syphilis, trichomoniasis
- any type of diabetes;
- exacerbation of any chronic disease;
- pregnancy at any stage;
- frequent exposure to stressful situations.
In addition, the most susceptible to papillomavirus infection are experienced smokers, as well as women taking combined contraceptive pills.
Sexual transmission of HPV
If your immune system is weakened, having sex with a sick person is a 100% way to get human papillomavirus infection.Due to the high risk of transmission of the disease agent, doctors insist on giving up promiscuity and recommend having intimate relations only with a reliable sexual partner.
Research on the nature of papillomavirus helped to determine that the source of infection is male in almost 75% of cases.However, this does not mean that the majority of infected representatives of the fairer sex do not spread HPV.The presence of external symptoms of the disease - condylomas located on the mucous membranes of internal organs - can increase the chance of transmission of the human papillomavirus from a woman to a man.Moreover, even a strong immune system is not always able to protect against human papillomavirus infection.
There is an opinion that you can catch the disease only through normal intercourse (the penetration of the penis into the vagina).But in reality it is not like that.Doctors say that virus cells spread regardless of the method of sexual contact with the carrier.It can be:
- oral sex;
- touching the genitals with your hands;
- anal sex;
- sex without penetration.
In addition, the virus is found in saliva, so you can get HPV even with a simple kiss.
Can condoms protect against diseases?
Manufacturers of barrier contraceptives say that a condom is 99% capable of preventing any sexually transmitted infection.This raises a completely logical question: does it work against papillomavirus?
HPV is a unique infection, there is no absolute protection against it.Therefore, even a condom will not fully guarantee that the infection will not pass from the carrier to a healthy person during sexual intercourse.This is explained by the presence of viral cells along the skin of the infected object, and if you wear a condom, the papillomavirus does not come into contact with the genitals, but with other parts of the body.
Of course, this does not mean that condoms are a useless method of contraception.Although it does not protect against HPV, it prevents the transmission of other more serious diseases and also protects against unplanned pregnancy.
It is important!If you have a strong immune system, the probability of getting infected with HPV during sex is almost zero, but doctors advise not to exclude this possibility and take additional measures, for example, regularly take immunomodulatory drugs.
Vertical transmission method
The method of vertical transmission of the virus is infection during the intrauterine development of the child or during its passage through the birth canal.
Infection occurs until about the sixth week of pregnancy, when the baby's bronchioles and alveoli have not yet formed.At this moment, respiratory papillomatosis begins to develop in the fetus.If the baby has difficulty breathing due to growths in the respiratory tract during birth, doctors perform a surgical operation.In this case, drug treatment is useless.
If the expectant mother is infected with papillomavirus after 6 weeks of pregnancy, the virus can be transmitted during childbirth.The baby lacks placental protection and passes through the birth canal where the infection occurs.
HPV treatment in pregnant women
If the human papillomavirus is detected without external symptoms, doctors prescribe the woman to take immunostimulating drugs.If the mother-to-be has condylomas on the walls of the vagina or cervix, they should be removed.You can do this using:
- laser therapy;
- electrocoagulation;
- destruction of radio waves.
In particularly severe cases, the patient is prescribed surgery.This method is used only when the tumor is more than 5 cm or cancer is suspected.
With a predetermined diagnosis of papillomavirus, a pregnant woman undergoes a cesarean section.This is the only way to protect the child from infection.
Very often papillomavirus manifests itself after pregnancy.The reason for this was a temporary decrease in the protective functions of the body.If there are no growths on the walls of the vagina or cervix, no treatment is prescribed.Usually, external signs of HPV disappear on their own after the baby is born.
Household transmission of the virus
When a person is diagnosed with papillomavirus, we can say with 90% certainty that he has already infected all other members of his family.You can get HPV at home:
- when wearing the patient's shoes or clothes;
- when sharing towels, clothes and other personal hygiene items;
- through saliva when using dishes or a toothbrush;
- after using a razor (the greatest risk of infection is a cut in the skin).
Other ways of spreading the infection
In addition to all the listed ways of transmission of the papillomavirus, it is quite possible to choose the causative agent of the disease:
- in the bath, sauna or swimming pool;
- in public transport (the main places where viral cells are collected are handrails, seats, doors);
- when shaking hands with a sick person;
- when using elevators, escalators;
- in the nail salon (in case of insufficient sterilization of instruments).
Some time ago, information was published that almost 20% of cases of papillomavirus infection occur with donor blood transfusions.In addition, hospital and clinic workers are at a higher risk of infection because they can inhale disease cells when they come into contact with the patient.In this case, a medical mask is a poor protection method.
Vaccination – Guaranteed to be safe against HPV?
Many people have heard about the benefits of vaccination against human papillomavirus, but few people know that even this method does not guarantee complete safety from infection.
Today there are two types of preventive medicine.It is a mistake to think that they are protected from all existing types of papillomavirus.Their composition helps protect you from only a few types of HPV, which are classified as dangerous types for cancer - 6, 11, 16, 18.