Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsTimingFactorsTreatmentPrevention and RiskSeeking Medical Care
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Timing
Factors
Treatment
Prevention and Risk
Seeking Medical Care
There is no treatment for HPV, but treatments for genital warts are available. These treatments may remove the warts, but the virus will remain, and warts may return. If no treatment is applied, genital warts may go away on their own, stay the same, grow bigger, or increase in number.
This article will discuss the duration of genital warts, factors affecting genital wart remission, treatment for genital warts, prevention and risk reduction, and when to contact a healthcare provider.
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Duration: When Do Genital Warts Go Away?
For some people, genital warts can go away on their own within six months without treatment. For others, warts can persist for longer or require treatment.
When and if warts go away with treatment also varies. It may take weeks to months for treatment to work, and sometimes, treatment doesn’t work. If one treatment isn’t successful, your healthcare provider may suggest trying a different treatment.
For example,cryotherapy, one of the first-line therapies for genital warts, involves up to seven weekly treatments and healing typically takes three to four treatments. Recurrence occurs with this treatment in about 10% of cases.
HPV and Curability
There is no cure for HPV, and removing the warts does not remove the virus from the body. The virus continues to live inside the skin, which may cause warts to return.
The body’s immune system typically clears theHPV viruswithin one to two years, but for some people, the virus does not go away.
With a healthyimmune system, about half of people will have the virus clear after eight months, and fewer than 10% will experience the virus lasting longer than two years.
It’s important to remember that the virus is still contagious through sex and skin-to-skin contact—even once the warts are gone—until the virus has cleared the body.
Do Genital Warts Mean My Partner Cheated?A person may have HPV without symptoms appearing for some time, even years. It can take time for symptoms to appear, if they do at all. If you oryour partnerare diagnosed with genital warts or HPV, it doesn’t necessarily mean someone has had sex outside of the relationship. It is possible to have contracted HPV from a previous partner and be unaware of the infection.
Do Genital Warts Mean My Partner Cheated?
A person may have HPV without symptoms appearing for some time, even years. It can take time for symptoms to appear, if they do at all. If you oryour partnerare diagnosed with genital warts or HPV, it doesn’t necessarily mean someone has had sex outside of the relationship. It is possible to have contracted HPV from a previous partner and be unaware of the infection.
Factors Affecting Genital Wart Remission
Whether or not genital warts go away (with or without treatment), and whether or not they recur, varies from person to person. Some factors that may increase the likelihood of persistent or recurrent genital warts include:
Should I Get Treatment?
Some reasons you may wish to consider treatment include:
It is important to remember that even with treatment for genital warts, you can still pass the HPV virus on to others.
Treatment to Help Genital Wart Healing Process
Treatment for genital warts should be undertaken with the guidance of a healthcare provider. Never useover-the-counter or at-home wart treatmentson genital warts. These are not meant for use on genitals and can be harmful.
Although there is no treatment for HPV, several treatments are available for genital warts. Talk to your healthcare provider about your options and which might be best suited to you, based on factors such as the number and location of the warts, certain health conditions, and whether or not you are pregnant.
Treatments for genital warts include:
Topical Medications
Other Medications
Interferon:Causes an immune response and is available as a topical gel, but is more effective when injected into the wart
Procedures
Considerations to Take With Treatment for Genital Warts
When talking to your healthcare provider about treatment for genital warts, make sure to tell them about any medical conditions you have, especially ones that affect your immune system such as HIV,graft-versus-host disease, psoriasis, or rheumatoid arthritis. Also tell them about any prescription or over-the-counter medications you are taking, including herbal supplements, vitamins, and minerals.
Some topical treatments can weaken condoms and vaginal diaphragms if it comes in contact with them. Some treatments need to be washed off after a certain time or before certain activities. Talk to your healthcare provider about the potential effects of treatment and about any precautions you need to take.
Avoid shaving or waxing in areas where there are genital warts, as this could cause warts to spread.
Ways to help care for yourself during and after treatment for genital warts include:
Prevention and Risk Reduction
The HPV virus is spread through skin-to-skin contact, such as:
Treating genital warts may or may not reduce the chance of spreading the virus, and most people with HPV infection do not have visible warts.
To help reduce the risk of spreading or contracting HPV, take measures such as:
The HPV Vaccine
Available in the United States, the vaccineGardasil9helps protect against HPV-6 and HPV-11, which cause more than 90% of genital warts. It also helps protect against types 16 and 18, which cause about 70% of cervical cancers, and well as types 31, 33, 45, 52, and 58, which cause about 15% of cervical cancers.
The vaccine helps protect against contracting HPV infections, but does not treat current HPV infections or genital warts.
The vaccine is most effective if given before the the person is sexually active.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends HPV vaccination for:
Do Genital Warts Cause Cancer?Some types of HPV can lead tocervical cancer. HPV-6 and HPV-11, the types that are the usual cause of visible genital warts, rarely lead to cancer.Screenings such as Pap smears are still important as it is possible to contract more than one type of HPV.
Do Genital Warts Cause Cancer?
Some types of HPV can lead tocervical cancer. HPV-6 and HPV-11, the types that are the usual cause of visible genital warts, rarely lead to cancer.Screenings such as Pap smears are still important as it is possible to contract more than one type of HPV.
Some types of HPV can lead tocervical cancer. HPV-6 and HPV-11, the types that are the usual cause of visible genital warts, rarely lead to cancer.
Screenings such as Pap smears are still important as it is possible to contract more than one type of HPV.
When to Consult a Healthcare Provider
It is important to get a proper diagnosis if you have symptoms that could suggest genital warts, whether or not you choose to have treatment.
See a healthcare provider if you have:
Summary
Treating genital warts does not treat theHPV virus, which remains in the body and can still be spread to others after treatment.
Factors that may affect genital warts healing include immune system health, age, and lifestyle habits.
20 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.UpToDate.Patient education: Genital warts in women (Beyond the Basics).Centers For Disease Control and Prevention.About genital HPV infection.Jahic M.Cryotherapy of genital warts. Mater Sociomed. 2019;31(3):212. doi:10.5455/msm.2019.31.212-214National Health Service.Genital warts.Nemours KidsHealth.Genital warts (HPV).American Academy of Family Physicians.Genital warts.Healthdirect.Genital warts.Merck Manual.Human papillomavirus (HPV) infection.American Academy of Dermatology Association.Genital warts: diagnosis and treatment.Centers For Disease Control and Prevention.About STIs and Gay Men.Ranjeva SL, Baskerville EB, Dukic V, et al.Recurring infection with ecologically distinct HPV types can explain high prevalence and diversity. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 2017;114(51):13573-13578. doi:10.1073/pnas.1714712114University of Chicago Medicine.Men with HPV are 20 times more likely to be reinfected after one year.Planned Parenthood.How can I prevent getting or spreading genital warts?University of Texas at Austin.Genital warts.Better Health.Genital warts.Office on Women’s Health.Genital warts.American Academy of Dermatology Association.Imiquimod: a treatment for some skin cancers, genital warts.MyHealth Alberta.Genital warts: care instructions.Planned Parenthood.How do I get treated for genital warts?Nationwide Children’s.Genital warts (HPV infection).
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Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.UpToDate.Patient education: Genital warts in women (Beyond the Basics).Centers For Disease Control and Prevention.About genital HPV infection.Jahic M.Cryotherapy of genital warts. Mater Sociomed. 2019;31(3):212. doi:10.5455/msm.2019.31.212-214National Health Service.Genital warts.Nemours KidsHealth.Genital warts (HPV).American Academy of Family Physicians.Genital warts.Healthdirect.Genital warts.Merck Manual.Human papillomavirus (HPV) infection.American Academy of Dermatology Association.Genital warts: diagnosis and treatment.Centers For Disease Control and Prevention.About STIs and Gay Men.Ranjeva SL, Baskerville EB, Dukic V, et al.Recurring infection with ecologically distinct HPV types can explain high prevalence and diversity. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 2017;114(51):13573-13578. doi:10.1073/pnas.1714712114University of Chicago Medicine.Men with HPV are 20 times more likely to be reinfected after one year.Planned Parenthood.How can I prevent getting or spreading genital warts?University of Texas at Austin.Genital warts.Better Health.Genital warts.Office on Women’s Health.Genital warts.American Academy of Dermatology Association.Imiquimod: a treatment for some skin cancers, genital warts.MyHealth Alberta.Genital warts: care instructions.Planned Parenthood.How do I get treated for genital warts?Nationwide Children’s.Genital warts (HPV infection).
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
UpToDate.Patient education: Genital warts in women (Beyond the Basics).Centers For Disease Control and Prevention.About genital HPV infection.Jahic M.Cryotherapy of genital warts. Mater Sociomed. 2019;31(3):212. doi:10.5455/msm.2019.31.212-214National Health Service.Genital warts.Nemours KidsHealth.Genital warts (HPV).American Academy of Family Physicians.Genital warts.Healthdirect.Genital warts.Merck Manual.Human papillomavirus (HPV) infection.American Academy of Dermatology Association.Genital warts: diagnosis and treatment.Centers For Disease Control and Prevention.About STIs and Gay Men.Ranjeva SL, Baskerville EB, Dukic V, et al.Recurring infection with ecologically distinct HPV types can explain high prevalence and diversity. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 2017;114(51):13573-13578. doi:10.1073/pnas.1714712114University of Chicago Medicine.Men with HPV are 20 times more likely to be reinfected after one year.Planned Parenthood.How can I prevent getting or spreading genital warts?University of Texas at Austin.Genital warts.Better Health.Genital warts.Office on Women’s Health.Genital warts.American Academy of Dermatology Association.Imiquimod: a treatment for some skin cancers, genital warts.MyHealth Alberta.Genital warts: care instructions.Planned Parenthood.How do I get treated for genital warts?Nationwide Children’s.Genital warts (HPV infection).
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University of Chicago Medicine.Men with HPV are 20 times more likely to be reinfected after one year.
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Office on Women’s Health.Genital warts.
American Academy of Dermatology Association.Imiquimod: a treatment for some skin cancers, genital warts.
MyHealth Alberta.Genital warts: care instructions.
Planned Parenthood.How do I get treated for genital warts?
Nationwide Children’s.Genital warts (HPV infection).
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