What Causes HPV Breakouts?

Introduction

The human papillomavirus, or HPV, is a term used to describe over 100 virus strains that can cause serious problems if left untreated, especially in women. The most common strains of HPV are sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). They can infect the genital areas of both men and women, as well as the anus and rectum. HPV infections usually go unnoticed for much of the time the individual is infected. However, if the infection is accompanied by genital warts, breakouts can become common and extremely contagious.

Dormancy

One of the main reasons why HPV infections often go unnoticed is that the virus can stay dormant for large amounts of time. Someone can become infected one week and not see a single sign of the disease for years. However, the disease merely needs the right trigger to cause a breakout.

Stress

Stress has a mental effect on the body, but it also plays with the production of hormones in your body, especially the hormones produced by the adrenal glands. It also dampens your immune system. This can give the body just the right environment to allow HPV to become active without much fight from the body's natural defense system.

Hormones

Not only can stress-related hormones help trigger an outbreak, but a change in hormones due to pregnancy or birth-control pills may also be a catalyst for the infection. Estrogen and progesterone are the most common culprits in giving HPV the right environment in which to become active.

HIV/AIDS

HIV and AIDS both have the capacity to weaken the immune system enough for the HPV virus to become active and cause an outbreak. Without T-cells to fight off the infection, HPV can have free rein to cause both genital warts to break out, but also increase the chances for HPV to become high-risk and cause cervical cancer.

Prescriptions

Prescription drugs designed to suppress the immune system, such as azathioprine and cyclosporine, may also cause an outbreak of HPV symptoms. Although the drugs are designed to do good, such as keeping the body from rejecting a transplanted organ, the drug also suppresses the immune system enough for HPV to become active and thrive.

Resources

• Additional HPV Information