How do you prevent an HPV infection?
Taking preventative measures is of critical importance when it comes to reducing your risk of infection or further spread of the virus.
Practicing safe sex can greatly reduce the likelihood of getting an infection. This includes maintaining a low number of partners as well as the consistent use of condoms.
The Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends all children to be vaccinated before they become sexually active to prevent infection of high-risk strains of HPV.
For all the ladies out there, an important preventative measure that you can take is visiting your VOG doctor on an annual basis for your routine check up. Your doctor may perform a pelvic exam to make sure everything is normal in your vagina, vulva, uterus, cervix, rectum, ovaries and fallopian tubes. Your VOG doctor might suggest performing a pap smear as well. Pap smears are important as it involves examining cells from the cervix under a microscope to identify any abnormal cervical changes such as precancerous cells.
We hope you have a better understanding of HPVs now but if you have more questions or are concerned about other issues related to sexual health, you can get in touch with sexual health and VOG doctors on oDoc.