Genital warts epidemiology and demographics

Although treatments can remove the warts, they do not remove the HPV virus, so warts can recur after treatment. Traditional theories postulated that the virus remained in the body for a lifetime. However, new studies using sensitive DNA techniques have shown that through immunological response the virus can either be cleared or suppressed to levels below what PCR tests can measure. According to the Center for Disease Control‘s report on HPV to Congress in 2004, studies have shown that 70% of new HPV infections clear within one year, and as many as 91% clear within two years. The median duration of new infections is typically eight months. The gradual development of an effective immune response is thought to be the likely mechanism for HPV DNA clearance.

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