HPV is the human papillomavirus and is a sexually transmitted illness. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 20 million Americans are infected with human papillomavirus. Human papillomavirus can progress into serious, even deadly health conditions in some women. Luckily, more than 90 percent of all human papillomavirus infections go away on their own within two years, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. There are 40 different types of human papillomavirus. The Mayo Clinic States that more than 70 percent of all cervical cancer cases in the United States are caused by human papillomavirus 16 or 18.
Cuts in the Skin
If a person has some kind of opening in the skin, be it a cut, scrape or open wound, it is possible for the human papillomavirus to enter the bloodstream. However, it must be from another individual who is a carrier of the human papillomavirus. For instance, if a person has human papillomavirus and kisses a person who isn’t infected, but who has a cut in his mouth, the previously non-infected person will now have human papillomavirus. Genital warts are not the only way human papillomavirus can be spread from person to person. Regular skin warts can also carry the human papillomavirus, and the virus can spread quickly due to skin contact. Skin-to-skin contact is the most common way for the human papillomavirus to spread from person to person.
Sexual Contact
Human papillomavirus is one of the causes of genital warts. When these warts come into contact with any part of the skin that has an opening, human papillomavirus is passed along. According to the American Cancer Society, vaginal, anal and oral sex can spread human papillomavirus and the only sure way to avoid the disease is complete abstinence. Any time you engage in sexual activity, you should ensure that it is completely safe. It is too easy to contract many sexual transmitted diseases, including human papillomavirus, by having unsafe sexual contact. Around one-third of all cases of human papillomavirus are caused by sexual contact.
Passed from Mother to Infant
Although rare, it is possible for an infected mother to pass on a human papillomavirus infection to her newborn through childbirth. When human papillomavirus is passed on to a child through delivery, the baby can have serious effects from the infection. Babies who are delivered vaginally have a much greater chance of becoming infected than babies who are delivered via cesarean section. The newborn’s genitals can become infected with human papillomavirus, and the virus can even infect the baby’s upper respiratory system.
