A Guide to Anal Warts
Anal warts, known in the medical profession as condyloma, are
growths caused by infection by the human pappilloma virus (HPV)
and are usually found on the skin around the anus (rectal
opening), inside the anal canal or in the lower rectum. Anal
warts are usually but not exclusively transmitted through sexual
intercourse, usually anal intercourse, which makes the problem
prevalent in the gay community. It can take from one to six
months from time of exposure to the initial outbreak, but
sometimes the time span has been known to take years.
Before and after the outbreak, the virus remains in the body but
is inactive. Even if the outbreak is successfully treated and
the symptoms have been completely removed, the virus remains in
the body and may cause another outbreak at any time. The main
problem to getting quick and effective treatment of anal warts
is that there are usually no visible symptoms. There may or may
not be small growths in the anal area. For other people, there
may be some itching, burning, bleeding or mysterious moisture in
the area. Usually, the patient becomes alarmed at the
irregularities in a rather sensitive area and seeks diagnoses
quickly.
Qualified medical practitioners commonly use a device called an
anoscope, which is a short instrument easily inserted into the
anus, and allows the doctor to see what is going on just inside
the rectal opening, behind the sphincter muscles. If there are
any growths present in the skin of the anal canal, the doctor
may require further testing to determine the exact cause of the
problem. In most cases, however, a qualified doctor has seen
many cases of anal warts and can proceed immediately to a
treatment program.
Depending on the number, size and exact location of anal warts,
there are a variety of treatments available.
Small warts can be treated with podophyllin or bichloracetic
acid applied directly to the warts which cause exfoliation. This
procedure takes place in your doctor's office and takes just a
few minutes.
If the outbreak is more serious, cauterization is another
successful treatment. First, the area is numbed and then the
warts are burned off. And finally, if the warts are more
prevalent than can be handled with cauterization, the doctor may
decide to remove them surgically.
In either case, the treatment is almost always successful and
recovery is a lot less uncomfortable than it might sound.