Human papillomavirus (HPV) is a very common disease from which neither children nor adults are protected.It is quite easy to get infected with this infection, because its cells are around us and remain stable without a carrier for a long time.
In addition, it can be placed in the human body without being noticed and will not appear until a certain moment.During all this time, the infected object is a carrier of the disease, therefore HPV is transmitted both to people who are near him and to his family members.
Papillomavirus - a provocateur of the development of oncology
Almost one in three develops small growths on their body, which at first seem harmless and harmless.When such tumors are detected, the patient's first reaction is to remove them or remove them using traditional methods.
In fact, such actions often cause irreparable harm to health, since improper removal of the papilloma can provoke an active proliferation of epithelial tissue.This is what contributes to the rapid spread of HPV in the body, and in some cases even causes mutation of skin cells with subsequent degeneration into a cancerous tumor.
To date, scientists have divided all types of papillomavirus into three categories:
- safe;
- with low tumor;
- very oncogenic.
These groups include certain types of diseases, which have their own level of probability of growth transformation into a cancerous tumor.A virus with low and high oncogenicity, when it enters the body, penetrates the genome of epithelial cells, which changes their structure and causes the appearance of a malignant tumor.In this case, the patient requires immediate professional treatment, since if this problem is ignored, everything can end in death.It is not worth fighting the disease yourself, because it will still not be possible to cure it without the help of a specialist.
Important!In medical practice, there are precedents when a patient is diagnosed with a safe form of papillomavirus, but under the influence of external factors, most often due to mechanical growth damage, papillomas still degenerate into oncology.
How is human papillomavirus transmitted?
All types of diseases, oncogenic and harmless, spread in the same ways.HPV can be transmitted in one of three ways:
- sexual intercourse with an infected person;
- transmission of infection from mother to child during pregnancy (vertical method);
- family transmission.
The presence of lesions on the skin increases the likelihood of being affected by this disease.Through small scratches or scrapes, viral cells quickly penetrate deep into the skin and begin to spread throughout the body.In addition, the following factors can increase the chances of infection:
- weakening of the body's protective functions (seasonal or postoperative);
- the presence of intestinal dysbiosis or disorders of the normal microflora in the vagina;
- avitaminosis;
- alcohol addiction;
- sexually transmitted diseases, in particular gonorrhea, syphilis, trichomoniasis
- diabetes of any type;
- worsening of any chronic disease;
- pregnancy at any stage;
- frequent exposure to stressful situations.
In addition, those who are more susceptible to papillomavirus infection are experienced smokers, as well as women who take combined contraceptive pills.
Sexual transmission of HPV
If you have a weakened immune system, sex with a sick person is a 100% way to contract human papillomavirus infection.Due to such a high risk of transmission of the causative agent of the disease, doctors insist on abandoning promiscuity and recommend entering into intimate relations only with a trusted sexual partner.
Research on the nature of the papillomavirus has helped to prove that in almost 75% of cases the source of infection is a man.However, this does not mean that most representatives of the infected fair sex are not spreaders of HPV.The presence of external symptoms of the disease - condylomas, which are located on the mucous membrane of the internal organs - can increase the chances 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 this type of human papillomavirus infection.
There is an opinion that you can catch the disease only through normal intercourse (penis penetration 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 hands;
- anal sex;
- sexual intercourse without penetration.
In addition, the virus is found in saliva, so you can become infected with HPV even through a simple kiss.
Will a condom protect against disease?
Manufacturers of barrier contraceptives say that a condom is 99% capable of preventing infection with any sexually transmitted disease.This raises a completely logical question: does it work against the papillomavirus?
HPV is a unique infection against which there is no absolute protection.Therefore, even a condom will not provide a complete guarantee that the infection will not be transmitted from a carrier to a healthy person during sexual intercourse.This is explained by the fact that the infected object has viral cells all over the skin, and if you wear a condom, the papillomavirus will enter the body not through contact with the genitals, but through contact with other parts of the body.
Of course, this does not mean that the condom is 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.
Important!If you have a strong immune system, the likelihood of getting infected with HPV during sexual intercourse is almost zero, but doctors recommend not to exclude this possibility and take additional precautions, for example, by regularly taking immunomodulating drugs.
Vertical method of infection
The vertical mode of transmission of the virus is infection of the child during intrauterine development or during its passage through the birth canal.
The infection occurs until about the sixth week of pregnancy, at a time when the baby's bronchioles and alveoli have not yet formed.At this point, the fetus begins to develop respiratory papillomatosis.If at birth a baby is diagnosed with breathing difficulties due to growths in the respiratory tract, then doctors perform a surgical operation.Drug therapy in this case is useless.
If the expectant mother is infected with papillomavirus after 6 weeks of pregnancy, the virus can be transmitted during childbirth.The child is deprived of the protection of the placenta and passes through the birth canal, where the infection occurs.
Treatment of HPV in pregnant women
If the human papillomavirus is detected without external signs, doctors prescribe the woman to take immunostimulating drugs.If the future mother 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 a particularly severe case, the patient is prescribed surgery.This method is used only when the tumor exceeds 5 cm or there is a suspicion of cancer.
With a predetermined diagnosis of papillomavirus, a pregnant woman undergoes a cesarean section.This is the only way to protect a child from infection.
Very often, the papillomavirus appears after pregnancy.The reason for this was a temporary decrease in the protective functions of the body.If there is no growth on the walls of the vagina or cervix, no treatment is prescribed.Usually, after the baby is born, the external signs of HPV disappear on their own.
Family transmission of the virus
When we diagnose papillomavirus in a person, we can say with 90% confidence that it has already been transmitted to all other members of his family.You can get infected with HPV at home:
- when wearing shoes or clothing of a sick person;
- when sharing towels, washcloths and other personal hygiene items;
- through saliva when using dishes or a toothbrush;
- after using a razor (the greatest risk of infection is when the skin is cut).
Other ways of spreading the infection
In addition to all the listed routes of papillomavirus transmission, it is quite possible to detect the causative agent of the disease:
- in a bath, sauna or swimming pool;
- in public transport (the main places where viral cells accumulate are handrails, seats, doors);
- when shaking hands with a sick person;
- when using elevators, escalators;
- in a nail salon (in case of insufficient sterilization of instruments).
Some time ago, information was published that almost 20% of cases of papillomavirus infection occur through donor blood transfusions.In addition, hospital and clinic personnel are at greater risk of infection, as they can inhale disease cells after contact with a patient.In this case, a medical mask is a poor method of protection.
Vaccination - guaranteed safety against HPV?
Many people have heard about the benefits of vaccination against human papillomavirus, but few know that even this method does not guarantee complete safety from infection.
Today there are two types of preventive medications.It is a mistake to assume that they protect against all existing types of papillomavirus.Their composition helps to protect yourself from only a few types of HPV, which are classified as dangerous types for cancer - 6, 11, 16, 18.