7/5/13 || Dr. Dale Prokupek
Hello friends, I hope you had a wonderful Independence Day. I spent my day at a BBQ and unexpectedly got into conversation with a friend about HPV and Anal Warts. He learned a lot so I figured I'd blog about it.
So, everybody is familiar what warts are all about. In fact, you may even have it at some point of your life. They can be as simple as a small solid blisters that appears harmless. In bigger cases, they may look like a cauliflower attached to your skin. They are commonly found on hands and feet and many just ignore their presence. However, do you know that you may be unaware that you have it? Yes, they can be hidden in your anal area; hence you never had the chance to see it.
Appearance and Symptoms
Once the warts are found around your anal area or inside it, this is medically termed as “Condyloma Acuminata”. However, they may not only be confined on this area. Sometimes, they are also seen on your genital area. And since they start in sizes similar to a pin’s head, they may be barely visible. The fact that they are hidden from your view without presenting any pain or discomfort, you may not even know that they are there. However, if left untreated, they can grow bigger and multiply, ultimately covering your anal area. And worse cases may even lead to skin cancer. Though it may be asymptomatic for some, other may experience certain types of discomforts. They experience bleeding, itching, have mucus discharge and a feeling of mass or lump on their anal region.
How You Acquire It
As you look at the horrible images of anal warts, you may wonder how one acquires it? Obviously, you wouldn’t want to have it one of these days and the best thing for you to do is to exercise all measures to prevent it. Actually, this is one form of a Sexually Transmitted Disease that can be acquired through direct contact. However, it does not follow that only those who had anal sex can have them. Remember that these types of warts can be present in genital areas too. Hence, to avoid getting infected with such wart, see to it that you do not have multiple sex partners and screen your intimate partner for presence of these warts. Remember that even normal looking tissues may have embedded virus in them, causing warts to appear after a few months. Furthermore, you do not acquire the warts overnight. It will take around 3 months after contact for these warts to become visible.
Treatment
If you find yourself infected with anal warts, you need to know that things are not as worse as you think it is. The good news is; anal warts can be treated. In fact, for mild cases, it can be done through in an outpatient clinic where you can go home after these have been removed. Treatment modalities include topical meds, surgical removal; freezing with a liquid nitrogen, electrical cautery or electrical coagulation. Of course factors like the severity of the condition and cost matters a lot in the choice of treatment that you need to avail.
As with other types of disorders, anal warts can be treated. However, you may need to have follow-up visits to your doctor’s clinic since there are possibilities that they can recur. Most of all, early management is often preferable.
-- Dr. Dale
