Resolved question:
Hello doctor. I am a 17 years old female and sexually active. I got HPV vaccination some time ago and hope I am protected. Nowadays I use to have sex with my boyfriend regularly. I have been with him for about 6-7 months from now. He is already infected with HPV and has got genital warts in his genital areas. Am I susceptible for getting it transmitted to me? I wonder so because his warts are not getting off even after six months. I read from somewhere that it will go by its own in some time. So, I am really worried about the warts. Is it some different type than that protected by my vaccine? Is there a chance that I can also be affected with it? What is the success rate of HPV vaccination? Please help.
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Thanks for your question. You haven’t mentioned when you had got the vaccination. If you have got the complete course of vaccination before six months from having sex with your boyfriend, you are in the maximum protection. There are 3 shots of vaccines in a interval of 6 months in between and it also need another six months for getting complete protection from the date which you had the last dose. But if you had the vaccine more recently than 6 months or haven’t finished the course of three yet, there are risks of getting infected. This is because the virus will get transmitted from infected skin lesion and even condoms cannot provide complete protection, as male condoms cover only the shaft of penis. If the wart is somewhere else, there is a high risk of getting transmitted. But the immune system in body will start defending the virus after some time and prevent it from creating more warts or lesions. Usually, HPV is incurable and lasts for a lifetime, but in a dormant state as the immune system prevents any possible recurrences. Hope you are answered. Take care.