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Some Questions about HPV
I, male 33, received an unprotected blowjob in mid December. A month later I had a bad cold after which I noticed a small round soft flesh-colored bump on my scrotum about 2mm in diameter. I thought it was a skin tag and ligated it off with a piece of thread. It came off easily and didn't leave a scar. Then I began to wonder if what I had just removed was a genital wart. Since then, there has been no reoccurrence. A doctor checked me last week and said that it was probably not HPV but he wasn't sure because:
1. although genital warts can appear on the scrotum, they mostly appear on the shaft or near the head and
2. If it was HPV, it probably would've returned and spread due to the way I removed it. Tying off a wart, according to him, is not very effective because one needs to go a bit deeper into the skin in order to remove the infected tissue. I also read that the usual incubation time is 2-4 months, so it may have been too early for signs of HPV. Since my visit to the urologist I have also noticed a small bump on the shaft of my penis. It looks similar to an irritated follicle but there is no hair.
1 Are the chances slim of actually transmitting the virus via Oral sex?
2 What if she was rubbing her genitalia and then touching my penis occasionally? I imagine this could increase the risk.
3 A week before I removed whatever was there, I didn't see anything unusual. How long does it take for a genital wart to appear? I don't mean general symptoms of the virus (that is very unpredictable) but rather once it starts growing and once it is noticable?
4 Could it be that I have had some sort of HPV infection for a while but due to my weakened immune system from my cold, this triggered a dormant infection?
5 I have read that one can find other warts or infected areas by applying a diluted solution of vinegar to the area. Can this exacerbate symptoms and cause warts to increase in size or number?
6 If there are visible warts, should I stop masturbating until it clears up?
1. although genital warts can appear on the scrotum, they mostly appear on the shaft or near the head and
2. If it was HPV, it probably would've returned and spread due to the way I removed it. Tying off a wart, according to him, is not very effective because one needs to go a bit deeper into the skin in order to remove the infected tissue. I also read that the usual incubation time is 2-4 months, so it may have been too early for signs of HPV. Since my visit to the urologist I have also noticed a small bump on the shaft of my penis. It looks similar to an irritated follicle but there is no hair.
1 Are the chances slim of actually transmitting the virus via Oral sex?
2 What if she was rubbing her genitalia and then touching my penis occasionally? I imagine this could increase the risk.
3 A week before I removed whatever was there, I didn't see anything unusual. How long does it take for a genital wart to appear? I don't mean general symptoms of the virus (that is very unpredictable) but rather once it starts growing and once it is noticable?
4 Could it be that I have had some sort of HPV infection for a while but due to my weakened immune system from my cold, this triggered a dormant infection?
5 I have read that one can find other warts or infected areas by applying a diluted solution of vinegar to the area. Can this exacerbate symptoms and cause warts to increase in size or number?
6 If there are visible warts, should I stop masturbating until it clears up?
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
I agree with what your doctor told you about location of genital warts and your self-treatment. To your questions:
1) Genital warts are not acquired by oral sex. If it occurs, it is rare. In my 30+ years in a busy STD clinic, I have never once seen genital warts in someone who had not had genital or anal intercourse.
2) Theoretically that might increase the risk. But not enough to worry about.
3) Warts typically become visible 1-2 months after exposure.
4) Weakened immune systems are not known to increase the risk of catching HPV.
5) Applying vinegar in theory can help identify wart-infected tissues, which tend to whiten when acid is applied. However, this is not rececommended to diagnose warts, even for experienced health care providers and certainly not for medically untrained persons. Some HPV infected tissues don't turn white, and many white things aren't HPV. It's a useless maneuver.
You seem much more concerned about HPV than necessary. Everybody gets it somewhere along the line, except for permanently celibate persons and those whose only sex throughout life is with someone else who also never has had another partner. Most infections never cause visible disease and they all go away by themselves. Consider genital HPV a normal part of human sexuality. In any case, it is highly unlikely your scrotal lesion was a wart, that it had anything to do with your oral sex event, or that you caught any HPV infection from that event.
Best wishes-- HHH, MD
1) Genital warts are not acquired by oral sex. If it occurs, it is rare. In my 30+ years in a busy STD clinic, I have never once seen genital warts in someone who had not had genital or anal intercourse.
2) Theoretically that might increase the risk. But not enough to worry about.
3) Warts typically become visible 1-2 months after exposure.
4) Weakened immune systems are not known to increase the risk of catching HPV.
5) Applying vinegar in theory can help identify wart-infected tissues, which tend to whiten when acid is applied. However, this is not rececommended to diagnose warts, even for experienced health care providers and certainly not for medically untrained persons. Some HPV infected tissues don't turn white, and many white things aren't HPV. It's a useless maneuver.
You seem much more concerned about HPV than necessary. Everybody gets it somewhere along the line, except for permanently celibate persons and those whose only sex throughout life is with someone else who also never has had another partner. Most infections never cause visible disease and they all go away by themselves. Consider genital HPV a normal part of human sexuality. In any case, it is highly unlikely your scrotal lesion was a wart, that it had anything to do with your oral sex event, or that you caught any HPV infection from that event.
Best wishes-- HHH, MD
Thanks for answering my questions.
In my initial post I meant to write "A doctor (urologist) checked me last week and said that it was probably not HPV but he wasn't sure. He came to this conclusion because: "
You are reading content posted in the STDs Forum
Herpes spreads by oral, vaginal and anal sex.
Herpes sores blister, then burst, scab and heal.
STIs are the most common cause of genital sores.
Millions of people are diagnosed with STDs in the U.S. each year.
STDs can't be transmitted by casual contact, like hugging or touching.
Syphilis is an STD that is transmitted by oral, genital and anal sex.
