Genital wart is very common in sexually active adults. Most infections do not result in the manifestation of genital warts. The annual incidence of genital warts is 1-2 percent of the sexually active population. Genital warts are almost always spread by sexual contact but vertical transmission and autoinoculation do occur rarely.
Genital warts are not themselves cancerous, but warts caused by high risk types of HPV are predisposed to oncogenic transformation. All female patients with anogenital warts should be considered at risk for cervical, vaginal, and vulvar dysplasia, which can lead to cancer and death.
The CO2 laser utilizes focused infrared light energy to vaporize affected tissues. It permits precise tissue ablation by spatial confinement of thermal damage and effective vaporization, which promotes rapid healing without scar formation in most cases. CO2 laser therapy is a useful treatment modality, especially for extensive warts.
The principal advantages of CO2 laser therapy are precision (which results in sparing of normal tissue), probable elimination of the infective agent, and relatively good cosmetic result. Carbon dioxide laser can be used to treat extensive and thick warts quickly and without the drawing of blood.
The carbon dioxide laser is able to effect such wart clearance in part because of deeper penetration than generally occurs with cryotherapy. The CO2 laser is best used at power settings of 2-10 Watts because it vaporizes tissue with a shallow depth of penetration at those settings.
However, laser treatment is more complex and costly than electrosurgery or cryotherapy. A CO2 laser costs $5,000-50,000 and requires maintenance and additional training to perform correctly. CO2 laser therapy is typically an office procedure. However, larger lesions and pediatric patients may require anesthesia and therefore can be done in the hospital under general anesthesia.
HPV DNA may be released during laser vaporization of genital HPV infections; if appropriate evacuating equipment is used, contamination of the operator is unlikely. The surgeon and assisting personnel must wear laser masks and use a vacuum ventilation system.
Risk factors for transmission of genital warts by vaporization include the HPV type, thinness of skin, and viral burden. A disadvantage of the lasers is that the risk of scarring, although small, is greater than of cryotherapy. There are no new significant studies comparing the benefit of carbon dioxide laser therapy versus placebo.
In former studies, the efficacy of laser treatment ranged from 23 to 52 percent with 3-18 months follow up. Recurrence rates ranged from 60 to 77 percent. Newer studies either are poorly designed or involve too small a sample size. Most studies require additional therapies. Carrozza et al. compared extensive genital warts in HIV-positive and HIV-negative patients. The clearance and recurrence rates were similar for both groups.
Selection of a treatment modality may depend on the number, size, and location of lesions. There is little certainty that one approach is more effective than another, although costs differ. Determining the best treatment for genital warts takes into account efficacy, needs, preferences, financial resources and convenience to the patient.
Warts occurring on the body, face, feet, hands or genitals can be successfully eliminated with AntiWarts-Rx. This product is made from strictly certified organic antiviral plant material and concentrated with naturally occurring monoterpene ketones which have tremendous antiviral effects against the wart virus, HPV, as demonstrated in published scientific studies.
As some go their entire life without ever having a wart, while others seem prone to the infection, it is commonly believed occurrences of warts are associated with a lower immunity against HPV. As a result, ImmunoDrops for Warts is a powerful organic dietary supplement developed by NaturesPharma exclusively to combat HPV and strengthen immune parameters for those afflicted with warts.
The antiviral properties of these treatments are undisputed and basic common sense must be considered when using any treatment, natural or synthetic. It is imperative that there is trust in the manufacturers who are the purveyors for quality. To learn more, please go to http://www.forcesofnatureusa.com.