Please help! HPV - inform past partners???

[jda123]

I recently found out I have HPV genital warts.  What is the thought on whether I should inform past partners?  I'm an honest person and I want to do the right thing, but everything I've read actually discourages informing of past partners, and certainly doesn't make it sound like a moral obligation.  I have two recent partners I can think of that I'm fairly certain I exposed to it before I was diagnosed.  Do I have to inform them? Before them I hadn't been active since late 2006.  Do I need to inform her?

I wouldn't be too uncomfortable telling someone that I had HPV, it's the HPV warts that I'm really embarrassed about.  If I tell them I have HPV without telling them I have warts, am I doing them an injustice?  Will it affect the manner in which they seek medical help?

Please help!
Thanks
J

[ataglance]

I think you should tell the 2 last partners abt HPV.  Tell them you think it's the low risk HPV type and that they need to see a dr.   It's the right thing to do. Once the dr. knows that they have been exposed to HPV, they look for warts anyway, so if you wanted to just tell them it was HPV and leave out the wart kind, it's not going to matter.  You don't need to be embarrassed abt this.  Feel good that you are doing the responsible thing.  The low risk HPV (that one causes warts) is the good kind to get.  The high risk HPV can lead to cancer in 1% of the women (doesn't really affect men.)

[jda123]

Thanks for the feedback.

Any ideas on why everything I've read seems to discourage informing past partners?

[ataglance]

Probably b/c everyone gets hpv at some point.  All sexually active people have been exposed to  at least 1 or more of the 30-40 hpv virus strains.  Condoms don't even really help (still you should use them!!!)

It also depends on when you had hpv.  If one of your partners was a year ago, don't bother saying anything.  If one of your partners was 3 months ago, you should tell because you were probably contagious at that time assuming you have just been diagnosed with warts.

[jda123]

Can a doctor tell you which strain you have?  Is there any way I could claim to know I had HPV without disclosing that I had warts?

[mayflowers]

I believe that they can tell but the test is really expensive.  To be honest, save your money and don't worry abt the strain.  Most strains cause warts and then some can cause cellular changes in a woman's cervic.  
Like Dr. HHH says, everyone is going to get at least one HPV in their lifetime.  You're ex's already have a few I'm sure.  They might have even been treated for warts but not have told you.

[jda123]

Can they tell you if it's a high-risk or low-risk strain?  Basically I want to be able to inform past partners that I have HPV without disclosing I have warts, but I don't want them to worry I have the kind that causes cervical cancer.  Is it possible that someone could know they have low-risk HPV without having warts?

[mayflowers]

They can only test for  high risk HPV - and it's only for women. There is no approved test for men at this time.   Alot of dr.'s  will do the test at the same time as a pap.  The bad thing abt this is that is that someone could have high risk hpv but their immune system is able to keep the virus under control therefore the HPV test will show up as negative.  If you test positive for high risk HPV it just means you have an active high risk HPV infection.

I don't think there is a test for low risk HPV so no, a person would only know if they had low risk HPV b/c they had warts.  Most people have been exposed to one of the low risk HPV's but most people don't get warts.  I've never had a wart in my life and I'm sure I must have been exposed to low risk HPV.  

Calling and telling a past partner that you have a wart on your privates is never fun.  If you are sure that you exposed one of your ex's (and she may have even given it to you) than just call and say the dr found a "skin tag-wart-like bump" and he thinks it could be caused by low risk HPV.  It's not serious, just have your gyn check you out thoroughly when you go to your next appt.  

Don't be all down and sad abt it, remember most ppl have this anyway.  You're just telling her to make sure that her dr checks her out thoroughly.  

[Sweets9790]

i went throught the same thing.....i found out and i was pretty surre that i gave it to these 2 guys (smh) it was hard but i told them,......i guess im like u i couldnt no tell them cus informing ppl about sumthing is helpin prevent it from spreading......i know its embarrassing so do it ova the phone, cus if ur like me u just mite cry so best ova the phone. ayh it wont kill them but when i found out i had it all i was thinkin was...y didnt this **** just tell me what he gave me plus i wud have felt so bad, once i told um it was a weight lifted off of me....but i told them cus i dont want it spreading all ova the place