HPV Infection: Symptoms, Complaints, Signs

The following symptoms and complaints may indicate human papillomavirus (HPV) infection:

Leading symptoms (see disease below) (modified from).

Sex of the affected person Disease Associated HPV types
♂ ♀ Bowenoid papulosis – skin infection in the genital area resulting in characteristic papular skin lesions. 16, 18
♂ ♀ Condylomata acuminata (synonyms: condylomata, wet warts, genital warts); macerating (“soaking”) dermatoses such as microtraumas (e.g., from intimate shaving) are favoring factors 2, 6, 11, 16, 27, 30, 40-42, 44, 45, 54, 55, 57, 61, 70> 90% are caused by low-risk types HPV 6 and HPV 11
♂ ♀ Condyloma planum (flat condyloma).

  • Male: bowenoid papulosis; severe intraepithelial neoplasia in the penile region in the form of flat, reddish-brownish maculo-papular (“nodular-spotty”) skin lesions, usually with evidence of HPV 16
  • Woman: special form of condyloma on the cervix uteri.
6, 11, 16, 18, 31
♂ ♀ Condylomata gigantea (Buschke-Löwenstein tumors; large, verrucous (“wart-shaped”) imposing tumors in the genital area; giant condylomas) 6, 11, 56
♂ ♀ Epidermodysplasia verruciformis (EV; synonym: Lewandowsky-Lutz dysplasia; Lutz-Lewandowsky epidermodysplasia verruciformis) – extremely rare autosomal recessive genodermatosis (inherited skin disease). 5, 8, 9, 12, 14, 15, 17, 19, 20, 21, 47
♂ ♀ Filiform warts (thin, filiform warts common in butchers: butcher’s wart). 7
♂ ♀ Focal epithelial hyperplasia of the oral mucosa (Heck’s disease). 13, 32
♂ ♀ Conjunctival papillomas – benign (benign) papillomas on the conjunctivae. 6, 11
♂ ♀ Laryngeal papilloma (HPV ) – benign tumor of the larynx. 6, 11
♂ ♀ Mosaic warts – plantar wart beds formed by confluence of individual verrucae plantares. 2
♂ ♀ Verruca plana (synonym: flat wart). 3, 10, 28, 41
♂ ♀ Verruca plana juvenilis (synonym: juvenile flat warts). 3, 10
♂ ♀ Verruca plantaris (synonyms: plantar wart, deep plantar wart/foot wart, myrmecia). 1, 2, 4
♂ ♀ Verruca vulgares (synonym: vulgar warts. 1, 2, 3, 4
Dysplasias and carcinomas
♂ ♀ Intraepithelial dysplasias (perianal, vulvar, cervical). 16, 18, 31, 45, 52, 58
♂ ♀ Anal carcinoma (anal cancer) 16
♂ ♀ Head and Neck Cancer 16, 18, 33
Laryngeal papillomas (papillomas of the larynx). 6, 11
Penile carcinoma (penile cancer) 16
Vaginal carcinoma (cancer of the vagina) 16, 18, 31, 33
Vulvar carcinoma (vulvar cancer) 16, 18, 31, 33, 45
Cervical carcinoma (cancer of the cervix) 16, 18, 26, 31, 33, 35, 39 45, 51, 52, 53, 56, 58, 59, 66, 68, 73, 81, 82, unclassified virus types.
Note: types 16, 18, 31, 33, 35, 52, 58 high-risk HPV types.

Note: There is now an HVP vaccine that is effective against nine virus types (6, 11, 16, 18, 31, 33, 45, 52, 58) (nine-way HPV vaccine). Note: Because HPV vaccination does not include all HPV subtypes classified as oncogenic, screening is mandatory (required) even in vaccinated individuals. Possible accompanying symptoms

  • Pruritus (itching)
  • Burning
  • Bleeding
  • Eczema
  • Fluorine (discharge)

Other notes

  • Subclinical genital condyloma (Condylomata acuminata) and intraepithelial neoplasia (dysplasia considered precancerous) can be visualized by acetic acid test (dabbing the lesion with 3-5% acetic acid).
  • More than 100 HPV types have now been detected. They are associated with various tumors and warts.
  • 30 to 40 HPV types are found in the anogenital region (area of the body surrounding the anus (anus) and sexual organs (genitals)).
  • HPV infection are causally involved in carcinomas of the mouth pharynx, vulva (totality of the external primary sex organs), penis and anus.
  • Notice: In industrialized nations, more people now die from HPV-associated oropharyngeal tumors (oral pharyngeal tumors) than from cervical carcinomas (cervical cancer).

Warning signs (red flags)

  • Medical history: Patients with
    • HIV (HIV patients: 25- to 100-fold increased likelihood of developing HPV-induced tumors).
    • Autoimmune disease (e.g., lupus erythematosus, psoriasis (psoriasis), rheumatoid arthritis; it is not conclusively clear whether the autoimmune disease is causative or the immunosuppressive therapy)
    • Condylomas (= indicator of susceptibility (sensitivity) to infection with high-risk HP viruses).
    • Other sexually transmitted infections (STIs).
    • HPV-induced cervical cancer (cervical cancer) and their partners.
  • Anogenital warts in children may indicate child abuse