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What Should I Know About HPV Infection?
How Women Get HPV
How Can I Tell if I Have HPV? And What Can Happen to Me if I Have It?
How Is an HPV Infection Treated?
If I Have HPV and It Goes Away, Can I Get It Again?
Almost all HPV that affects the cervix is spread by sex
(through intimate
genital
to genital contact including vaginal or
anal intercourse, finger to genital contact, and finger to anal
contact). It is rarely spread through oral sex. You are at higher risk
of getting HPV if:
- You have had more than one sex partner, or
- Your sex partner(s) has had other partners.
If your health care provider finds you have HPV, your sex
partner(s) should also get checked. They usually will have no
symptoms. For more information about HPV and how to protect
yourself, see the Resources section.
Most women with HPV of the cervix do not know they have it.
Most of the time, it does not cause any symptoms. Certain types of
HPV can cause
warts
on the outside of the genitals, but the only
way to know for sure whether you have HPV is by seeing your
health care provider.
Almost all HPV infections clear up on their own. Many women
with HPV will have cell changes at least briefly within a few
months to a year after getting the virus. Most types of HPV do not
lead to cancer. But if HPV does not go away, you are more at risk
of developing a precancerous change that needs to be treated. It is
best to see your health care provider on a regular basis.
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"I was really afraid
when I found out
I have HPV, but
talking to the nurse
really helped me
understand what it
is and what we can
do about it…"
JESSICA, AGE 28
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Although HPV itself cannot be treated, the cell changes that it
causes can be treated. Simple treatments that remove or destroy
the cells may prevent cancer. This is why regular pelvic exams and
Pap tests are important, along with care for cell changes.
If you or your partner has HPV, you will share it until your bodies'
immune systems get rid of the infection. If you have sex only with
each other, you will not pass the HPV virus back and forth. This is
because when the HPV goes away, the immune system will
remember that HPV type and keep you from getting it again. Even
though you are protected from one type of HPV, you are not
protected from getting the many other types of HPV.
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