Hello,

I'm following up on my previously asked questions on #8978. I realized that I still had more questions, and also with the question I asked previously, I wanted to follow up and be more specific. For context, I am now fully vaccinated for HPV, having had my third shot on August 9th. All shots were done on recommended intervals.

1. My previous question was about spreading HPV by hand after being vaccinated. I'm not sure if I was entirely clear about my worries last time, so I wanted to ask -- if an infected area of my penis touches another area (scrotum, pubic area, etc. that had not previously been infected) while I am sleeping or something, am I fully protected from the HPV spreading since I am fully vaccinated? Even though genital to genital contact is the primary method of transfer, I should be protected from the HPV/warts spreading anywhere new since I am vaccinated, correct?

2. I've seen varying information about time to clearance. The CDC, as well as some information I got when I got vaccinated, states that most infections clear within 1-2 years. I have seen the time of 2-3 years posted here once of twice, while others have said that, based on all available studies, 50% clear within six months, 70 within one year, and 90% within two years. Based on your experiences, which of these numbers would be the most accurate in your opinion?

3. HPV only affects the epidermis, correct? It is not a dermis infection?

1.  As I said before "Auto-inoculation is a very, very rare complication of HPV although infections may be spread if someone shaves over a wart or otherwise vigorously and somewhat traumatically inoculates themselves.  Auto-inoculation is not something for most person with HPV to worry about."  This is the case for unvaccinated persons.  Your vaccine status makes your risk hand transmission of your HPV infection virtually zero (not sure how much lower risk can be than virtually zero but for vaccinated persons it is even lower than in unvaccinated persons and, other than the events I mentioned previously, is virtually unheard of.  There is no need to take specials steps to avoid transmission of HPV on your  hands.

Just so I am not misunderstood, my new question was in regards to skin to skin contact, no longer about hand transmission; I wasn’t attempting to ask the same question twice. My apologizes if this was not clear. I was asking about simply an infected area of my penis touching another not infected area, such as the scrotum or public area, and spreading the infection. Because I am fully vaccinated, I just wanted to confirm that I would not have to worry about spreading a previous type infection through this kind of genital to genital contact due thanks to vaccination. Perhaps you can provide a bit more clarity on this?

I’m also wondering, you mentioned in another post that condoms only lower the risk of infection between 60-70%. My questions is… why? As HPV is transmitted by skin contact, I would expect the condom to be protective. Can HPV penetrate through the latex of the condom, or are we actually talking about areas where the condom doesn’t cover, not necessarily the protected area? This has always confused me.

I hope I do not seem too worried, I’m simply curious. I have seen you tell users that HPV and especially warts are nothing to worry about and will go away on their own. Your advice certainly helps, and I’m thankful for your time.

Condoms do not completely eliminate the risk of transmission of genital warts to others because condoms sometimes slip and do not cover the entire wart.  HPV would not penetrate latex or polyurethane condoms.

I hope I got things right this time. if not, please try again.  EWH