HPV Awareness!
Spread the Word, Not the Disease!
How Do I Get It?
HPV spreads from person to person through sex or intimate skin-to-skin (genital) contact. Condoms provide some protection. However, condoms cannot prevent infection completely, because they do not cover all areas of the genital region. Having more than one sexual partner may increase the risk of getting HPV, it is possible to get the virus from just one person. In fact, it is estimated that 8 of 10 women will catch the virus at some time by the age of 50.
Symptoms
HPV does not usually cause any symptoms you can notice or that need to be treated. However some symptoms that have been experienced are unusual vaginal discharge or bleeding, lower back pain, painful urination (particularly when there is also pain in the lower abdomen), and pain during sex.
Others symptoms include genital warts and abnormal Pap Smear results. For images of signs and symptoms please visit our HPV Gallery.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has reported that as many as 80 percent of women will get a genital type of HPV by the age of 50.
Is There a Cure?
There is NO cure for Hpv at this time. Some symptoms may clear on their own, but others must be medically treated.
Image courtesy of http://www.koshland-science-museum.org/exhib_infectious/vaccines_09.jsp
Gardasil image courtesy of www.gardasil.com
