What impact does HPV positivity have on patients?

HPV is the abbreviation of human papillomavirus, which is a highly contagious virus. In most cases, it is infected and spread through sexual intercourse. Once male friends are infected with this virus, they are likely to suffer from candidal balanitis, genital warts, genital herpes, etc.; female friends who are infected will suffer from cervical cancer, vaginal cancer, etc.; if pregnant women are infected with this virus, it will also endanger the fetus in the womb and even cause deformities.

1. Impact on the male reproductive system

Human papillomavirus (HPV) grows and reproduces in moist, hot and humid mucous membranes and skin areas on the human body surface. Male genital candidiasis is mostly caused by infection from their spouse or sexual partner, or indirect infection. In addition, because some patients have phimosis or prepuce, the local area is moist, which aggravates the Candida infection.

Foreign scholars have confirmed that the incidence of Candida balanitis in married men's genitals is 14.63%; if the male glans is tested by culture method, the positive detection rate of Candida is as high as 49%; a survey of 138 male patients with Candida balanitis found that 23.9% of their female sexual partners suffered from Candida vaginitis.

Research in this area mainly focuses on women, while there are fewer reports on latent HPV infection in men, and its epidemiological characteristics are not yet very clear. Generally speaking, the effects of HPV on the male reproductive system are mainly genital warts and genital herpes.

2. Impact on the female reproductive system

Certain HPV types are classified as "high-risk" because they cause cell mutations and can lead to cancers of reproductive organs: cervical, vaginal, anal and penile cancers can all be caused by HPV.

In fact, researchers say that more than 99 percent of all cervical cancers are caused by these high-risk HPV viruses. High-risk latent HPV types are HPV16 and HPV18, which cause approximately 70% of cervical cancers.

If the body clears the infection, cervical cancer cells can return to normal values. But if the body does not clear the infection, the normal cells of the cervix may continue to develop abnormal cells. This can lead to precancerous lesions or development into cervical cancer.

3. Impact on the fetus

Generally speaking, HPV infection usually parasitizes the nerve roots and skin layers in the perineum. It usually does not cause spread infection or invade the blood system, so it will not cause any impact on the fetus. The greatest impact and harm to the fetus may be during delivery. The disease may be transmitted to the child through the birth canal. Therefore, attention should be paid to the delivery situation. It is recommended to choose a cesarean section under the guidance of a doctor.