Genital Warts Symptoms

One reason why genital warts are so prevalent (and difficult to track too) is that although they are a manifestation of HPV infection, not everyone who has this viral infection will develop genital warts.

The strain of Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) that causes genital warts can lie dormant in a person’s body for anywhere from three months to two years, with no outward signs.

You may never develop any genital warts at all, but still be infected – and highly contagious. Some carriers of the disease will have occasional outbreaks due to hormonal changes during pregnancy, or when their immunity system is weak, for example, while other carriers may never develop genital warts.

Common Genital Warts Symptoms

Genital warts symptoms can vary from anything to itchiness and discharge and bleeding. If you are infected with HPV you may develop symptoms of genital warts anywhere from a few weeks to a few months after exposure.

In some cases, though, the virus may lay dormant in your system up to few years before you develop any genital warts symptoms.

 No Outward Symptoms and Dormant HPV

In many cases genital warts don’t cause any symptoms. The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) has estimated that nearly half of the women infected with HPV have no obvious symptoms.

Although genital warts are painless and in many cases do not cause any symptoms, they may be bothersome because sometimes genital warts infection is associated with itching, burning, or tenderness.

Additionally genital warts may result in localized irritation, depending upon their anatomic location.

Rare and Serious Symptoms of Genital Warts

In rare cases, bleeding or urinary obstruction may be the initial problem when the wart involves the urethral opening (the opening where urine exits the body.)

Women who have genital warts inside the vagina may experience bleeding following sexual intercourse or an abnormal vaginal discharge. Rarely, bleeding or urinary obstruction may occur if the wart involves the urethral opening.