QuestionHi Mia,
My ex-boyfriend had genital warts and we had unprotected sex so I was
probably exposed to it from him. I found out about this 2 years ago. I
recently had a PAP and HPV test and the results were normal. I do not have
any warts that I know of. Still, I am concerned with passing it on to future
partners.
I heard that HPV is spread through skin-to-skin friction. My gyno told me
that as long as we
use condoms and there are no warts on the vulva or labia, then the risk of
transmission is very low.
However, I find that there is discrepancy on the internet regarding oral sex
and mutual masturbation. Some sources say that it is very rare to transmit
HPV this way and others say that the chances are significant. Could a man
get HPV if he does oral sex on me or touches me and then touches himself
afterward?
Thanks.
AnswerHi Erin,
It is hard to say whether or not you are infected right now. It is possible to be infected and not have warts. In fact, most infections are asymptomatic, which is why many people who have HPV do not know. Also, since there is currently no test for men who do not have warts, many men have no idea they have HPV. It is also possible that you had HPV and have cleared the virus from your body so are no longer infected, or it is at a low enough dormant level to not be detected. Finally, it is also possible that you never had it at all.
Your doctor is correct that the risk of transmission with condoms, while not 0%, is greatly reduced.
The risk of HPV transmission through oral sex is very low and getting oral warts this way is very rare. Genital HPV is mainly spread through direct genital contact, so if he touches with his hands and then touches himself he will most likely not get it. Transmission this way is very rare.
There are many sites out there and not all of them have correct information. I am sending a few links of sites that I trust to give accurate information:
http://www.ashastd.org/hpv/hpv_overview.cfm
http://www.cdc.gov/STD/HPV/
http://www.medhelp.org/health_pages/STDs/All-the-HPV-info-you-could-ever-need/sh...
If you have further questions about this please let me know. I hope this is helpful.
-Mia
