Human Papillomavirus, more widely known as HPV is the most common STD in the world. Contraction of HPV can also result in serious consequences to the reproductive system. This makes preventing contraction of HPV a vital aspect of maintaining sexual health, especially since it is the cause of the majority of cervical, anal, and penile cancers.
Many methods of prevention are not known to prevent infection directly, but rather prevent the most extreme outcomes of HPV infection including cancer.
Vaccination
Getting vaccinated is one of the best ways to prevent HPV infection and its consequences. The U.S. currently only administers the Gardasil 9 HPV vaccine, which may help prevent nine strains of HPV. It has been shown to be extremely effective at preventing infection and HPV-related cancers in clinical trials. The CDC recommends getting vaccinated against HPV as early as 9 years old and as late as 26 years old, with 11-12 years of age being considered the ideal time to get vaccinated. However, Gardasil 9 has been administered in adults as late as 45 years old.
One study observed the highest effectiveness in patients who received the vaccine between 12 and 13 years old. This study observed the vaccine to be nearly 90% effective in preventing infection. The effectiveness of preventing infection was lowered to around 30% in patients who completed the vaccine series after age 18, and no statistically significant effect was observed in preventing infection in patients who began the series after 18 years old. However, the study did observe a considerable effect in the prevention of cervical cancer as a result of infection even when the vaccine was administered after the patient turned 19 years old.
Condoms
Vaccination is effective in preventing the most common strains of HPV, but it only prevents the contraction of the nine most common strains. This means that even vaccinated people are not protected against rarer strains of HPV, and should be taking measures to prevent contracting it.
Most studies have shown that regular use of condoms prevents the risk of transmission of HPV between sexual partners, but others have questioned if this effect is statistically significant. Doctors still strongly recommend using condoms as a method of HPV prevention. Despite questions around their effectiveness in reducing the risk of transmission of HPV, it has been made very clear that regular use of condoms prevents adverse effects as a result of HPV infection. Such effects include the development of warts around the genitals/anus and the formation of precancerous cells as a result of infection.
Circumcision
Another method of preventing HPV infection adverse effects is, perhaps surprisingly, circumcision. Circumcision has been shown to reduce the odds of infection as a result of exposure to HPV. This is believed to be because the virus does not thrive as well where there is more air flow, and genital hygiene upkeep is much easier for circumcised males. Generally, precancerous or abnormal cells that arise due to HPV are most often found on and under the foreskin. Therefore, circumcised males have been found to be less likely to develop such cells and are much less likely to develop penile cancer as a result.
Treating the Virus
After infection, preventing the development of cancer is extremely important. One of the primary ways to do this is to seek treatment for the infection itself in order to prevent abnormal/precancerous cells from developing over time. This includes the removal of warts or any abnormal cells through methods such as surgery, laser treatment, and liquid nitrogen. Anti-virals are not currently a recommended treatment for HPV.
The chosen treatment depends on the size and location of the warts. These treatments have not been explicitly proven to prevent transmission, but are believed to reduce the risk of developing cancer. Another way that the development of cancer as a result of HPV is prevented is through regular cervical cancer screening. This allows for timely treatment of any abnormal or precancerous cells. Regular cervical cancer screening has been shown to decrease incidences of cervical cancer by 50-85%.
Conclusion
HPV is an extremely common STD that can result in serious outcomes. While these outcomes can be very scary and even life-threatening, they can be prevented in a variety of ways. The most surefire way to do this is to get vaccinated during middle school. Even if you miss that window, getting vaccinated is still recommended to prevent cancers due to HPV. Condoms also can prevent the most negative outcomes of HPV infection, as can circumcision. While treatment of the virus if a less effective "hail Mary" at preventing the worst outcomes of HPV, it is still shown to have some effectiveness in preventing the development of cancer. Doing any or several of the above will help to keep your reproductive system healthy even if you end up infected with HPV.
For further information:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34833157/ Assessed and Endorsed by the MedReport Medical Review Board