Genital Warts Treatments

Genital warts are painless growths around your vagina, penis or anus that are caught during sex.

Genital warts can be caught from:

• Having unprotected sexual intercourse
• Skin to skin contact
• Sharing sex toys
• Oral sex

The genital warts virus can be passed on whether or not there are visible warts.

Many people with the virus do not have symptoms but can still pass it on.

If you have genital warts, your current sexual partners should get tested as they may have warts and not know it.

If symptoms do appear, it can happen over a year after infection

You cannot get genital warts from:

• Kissing
• Sharing towels, cutlery, cups or from toilet seats

The visible symptoms of genital warts appear differently on male and female bodies.

Male genital warts typically appear:

• Somewhere on the penis or scrotum
• Inside the urethra
• Around or inside the anus
• Upper thigh area

Female genital warts typically appear:

• Somewhere around the vulva
• Somewhere on the cervix
• Anywhere inside the vagina
• Around or inside the anus
• Upper thigh area

Treatment for genital warts needs to be prescribed by a doctor, and the type of treatment you'll be offered depends on what your warts are like.

The doctor or nurse will discuss this with you.

• cream or liquid:you can usually apply this to the warts yourself a few times a week for several weeks. Typical examples of such creams are Aldara, Conyline and Warticon, all of which are available through Access Doctor. In some cases you may need to go to the clinic every week for a doctor or nurse to apply it – these treatments can cause soreness, irritation or a burning sensation
• surgery:a doctor or nurse can cut, burn or laser the warts off – this can cause irritation or scarring
• freezing:a doctor or nurse freezes the warts, usually every week for 4 weeks – this can cause soreness

There is no cure for genital warts, but its possible for your body to clear the virus over time

Genital warts can be uncomfortable or unpleasant, but are not usually dangerous.

If the warts bleed uncontrollably, you should see a doctor immediately.

If they block the opening to the urethra to the point that you are not able to urinate, you may have to go see your doctor for a genital warts removal treatment.

Genital warts can be prevented by using the following precautions:

• Using condoms (male or female). This is regarded as the safest option when trying to prevent genital warts, as well as other STIs. However, HPV (the cause of genital warts) is spread by skin-to-skin contact, so it's possible that a condom won't cover all of the skin around the genital area.
• Avoiding sharing sex toys - if you do intend to share them, ensure that you wash them thoroughly and cover them with a new condom.
• HPV vaccines - Gardasil and Cervarix have both been approved to vaccinate against genital warts. These vaccines are not currently available for free outside the NHS. (They can't protect you from all types of HPV infections; therefore an additional cervical screening (i.e. smear test) may be required).

If you have already tested positive for genital warts, you can complete a quick and simple online consultation to determine which of the medications is most suitable for you.

The consultation will be assessed by one of our Access Doctor medical practitioners, who will prescribe the most appropriate and effective medication for you, according to your medical history and overall health.

Our pharmacy team will then dispense the medication and dispatch it for next day delivery.