Condylomas

What are condylomas?

Genital warts are flesh-colored or gray growths that appear in the genital area or in the area around the anus in both men and women. These growths are sometimes called condyloma acuminata or also venereal warts. And are the most common STDs caused by viruses. Condylomas are caused by the human papilloma virus /HPV/.

Condylomas can appear at any age. But most affected are aged 17-33. Venereal warts are highly contagious. There is a very high risk of developing an infection from a single sexual contact with someone who has genital warts.

In children under 3 years of age, condylomas are believed to have appeared as a result of infection with the causative virus through direct contact with the warts without sexual contact. However, the presence of venereal warts in children should raise the suspicion of committed sexual violence.

About 20% of people with warts also have other sexually transmitted diseases.

What are the symptoms?

Although warts are painless, they can be annoying because of their location, size, or the itching they cause. Their size varies from less than 1 millimeter to several square centimeters when several condylomas join each other.

Affected men and women often complain of painless bumps, itching, and discharge. In rare cases, bleeding or obstruction of the urinary tract may occur when the wart appears in the urethral opening – the opening through which urine leaves the body. It is possible that the affected person has a history of previous or current other sexually transmitted diseases.

Specific signs

In men:

Condylomas can appear in the urethra, penis, scrotum and rectal area. Warts are soft, raised tissue that can be smooth on the penis or very rough bumps /anal warts/. In other cases, condylomas appear as pearly, cauliflower-like formations with a slightly darker surface.

Most lesions are skin bumps, but some may be flat with only a slight elevation of the surface of the surrounding skin. Sometimes the lesions can be hidden by hair growth or on the inside of the foreskin in uncircumcised men.

In women:

Venereal warts look about the same as in men and usually appear in the moist area of ​​the labia and vaginal opening. Lesions visible on the external genitalia require a thorough examination of the vaginal canal, cervix and anorectal area, and without such examination are difficult to notice. Most vaginal warts appear asymptomatic. Rarely, women may experience bleeding after intercourse, itching or vaginal discharge.

Treatment of warts

Since venereal warts do not cause any symptoms other than the appearance of annoying skin lesions, treatment options are limited. However, it is important to consider that you have warts and yes:

• Take the necessary precautions to prevent trauma to the condyloma area because this can lead to bleeding;
• Be careful not to transmit the viral infection to your sexual partner;< /li>
• Condylomas themselves are contagious, so avoid touching them. Do not clean or press the warts.

There is no single effective method for removing warts, and in between 10% and 20% of those affected, they disappear on their own within 3 to 4 month.

The most frequently applied method and at the same time an effective method is cryotherapy – procedures in which the warts are frozen with liquid nitrogen.