Genital warts rising by 30 per cent a year
By Leo Leonidou
THE incidence of genital viral warts on the island is rising by 30 per cent every year in both men and women.
That was the verdict of Dr Constantinos Demetriou, President of the Cyprus Society of Dermatology and Venereology yesterday.
“If the increasing global numbers of sexually transmitted disease carriers spread fear, the numbers in Cyprus are shocking, considering its size,” he said. “These statistics call for an immediate education of the population, for it has become a public health issue.”
A news conference yesterday was the start of an intensive campaign for educating the public regarding genital warts, which are a result of the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV).
“We do not have exact statistics for the island as diagnosis is difficult, with some people not even knowing that they are carriers until they are examined by a doctor.”
He then gave an example. “I am discovering warts in as many as 20 per cent of women that come to me for laser hair removal of their bikini line.”
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