weckerly
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Joined: 02 Jun 2005
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 Posted: 11/22/05 - 10:39 Post subject: |
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Genital HPV infection is a sexually transmitted disease that is caused by human papillomavirus, HPV. Human papillomavirus is the name of a group of viruses that includes more than 100 different strains or types and more than 30 of these viruses are sexually transmitted. They can infect the genital area of men and women including the skin of the penis, vulva, cervix or rectum. Most people do not have any symptoms and will clear the infection on their own. Some of these viruses can cause abnormal Pap tests and are called "high-risk" types because they can lead to cancer of the cervix, vulva, vagina, anus, or penis. The ones that can cause mild Pap test abnormalities are called "low-risk" types. The types of HPV that infect the genital area are spread primarily through genital contact and most HPV infections have no signs or symptoms. Therefore, most infected persons are unaware they are infected, but they can transmit the virus to a sex partner. In rare cases, a pregnant woman can pass HPV to her baby during vaginal delivery. The virus lives in the skin or mucous membranes and some people get visible genital warts, or have pre-cancerous changes in the cervix, vulva, anus, or penis.
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