Having hpv can i get pregnant

Physiological changes during pregnancy and a decline in the functions of the immune system may increase the risk of oncogenic HPV persistence and progression to intraepithelial lesions in women older than 30 years of age [ 15 ]. Moreover, long-term use of birth control pills increases cervical cancer risk, importantly for women with persistent HPV infection. However, users of combined oral contraceptives COCs have a decrease in immune cells providing a favorable environment for the appearance of HPV lesions [ 16 ].

Women may worry about these issues but the literature is limited. Tseng et al. Detection of HPV DNA in semen, endometrium, and ovaries indicates the possibility of transmission even before conception [ 6 , 18 ]. Another possible route of infection is intrauterine or prenatal transmission; because of the reported presence of HPV DNA in the amniotic fluid, placenta, and cord blood samples. Close contact of the fetus with the infected cervical and vaginal tracts of the mother during delivery can cause perinatal transmission.

Maternal history of genital warts in pregnancy was associated with a higher risk of respiratory papillomatosis in the child [ 19 ]. Horizontal HPV transmission during breastfeeding or early nursing has also been considered as a significant contributor toward the infant's contagion.

Inconsistent results have been found in terms of breast milk as a potential reservoir of viruses [ 6 ]. In light of lifelong HPV protection, considering the vaccination of infants is suggested [ 6 ]. To date, limited qualitative studies have explored adverse psychological responses to HPV diagnosis. Uncertainty about the psychological effects of a positive HPV test highlights the need for further research in this area [ 20 ].

Most of the reproductive concerns emerged from these studies. Few studies have addressed the fertility and pregnancy concerns of HPV-positive women. In a study conducted in the United States, it was reported that many women expressed fear associated with role of HPV in their future pregnancy [ 21 ]. In other studies, women expressed worries surrounding HPV and female subfertility [ 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 ]. One study addressed women's concern about the HPV-associated risks of preterm delivery and implications of natural delivery from an HPV-infected birth canal [ 22 ].

In another study women were worried about the HPV transmission to the fetus [ 26 ]. Given the effect HPV may have on women of reproductive age, the provision of support and interventions for infected women requires a deep understanding of their concerns.

The current cervical cancer screening recommendation in Iran is co-testing HPV testing and Pap smear strategy for all women aged 30—59, with any marital status, every five years [ 27 ], which led to detecting many new cases of HPV in women of childbearing age [ 28 ]. Co-testing is available in all provinces of Iran although it is not covered by public insurance.

Limited studies have mentioned reproductive concerns often fears of infertility in general. There have been no qualitative studies to investigate specifically reproductive concerns and informational needs of HPV-positive women particularly in an Islamic cultural background. Therefore, we conducted interviews with Iranian HPV-infected women to better understand their reproductive concerns. The design of the present study is qualitative. It was conducted based on the conventional content analysis approach to understand the reproductive concerns of HPV-positive women by exploring their feelings, experiences, and perceptions [ 29 ].

This study was carried out from September to December at the referral gynecology-oncology outpatient clinic of Valiasr located in Imam Khomeini hospital complex, a large, busy, university-based, and geographically accessible complex in Tehran, founded in serving a large population of women from across the country nearly 40 women daily.

The clinic is equipped with colposcopy two gynecology beds and directed by oncologist-gynecologist SHSH the last author and her five colleagues. Women were eligible for interview if they were over 18 with a heterosexual partnership with any marital status including: single, married, widow, divorced ; had no severe disease including cervical cancer and were willing to share their experiences.

A maximum variation purposive sampling was used to recruit information-rich candidates with diverse age, marital status, education, and socioeconomic status. In total, 20 Persian-speaking women with different ethnic, cultural, and religious backgrounds were included. Two invited women refused to participate because they prefer not to discuss HPV. Since the clinic is crowded, all participants interviewed during their waiting hours.

Semi-structured one-to-one interviews were conducted using an interview guide Appendix 1 started with the demographic background and reproductive and screening history. Three pilot-interviews were done included in the study to improve questions.

Memos aided to design the next questions of the subsequent interviews. Besides, field notes were written during the interviews. Face-to-face in-depth interviews with participants' consent were recorded lasted between 35 and 90 min , transcribed verbatim, and collected until data saturation was reached over fifteen months. The data analysis was performed concurrently with data collection, using a qualitative content analysis approach described by Burnard et al.

Initially, interview transcripts, memos, and field notes were integrated, and two coders KQ and STM read the transcriptions multiple times to formulate a general understanding of the whole data. Open coding was based on this approach. Primary codes were then reduced by constant comparison and combination. The extracted codes were then brought together in terms of similarities and differences. The sub-categories with similar content were interpreted in a higher level of abstraction into the main categories.

The accuracy of this qualitative research was ensured according to the four criteria proposed by Guba and Lincoln, namely credibility, dependability, confirmability, and transferability [ 31 , 32 ]. The credibility criterion was achieved through prolonged engagement and member checking, by which, the transcript and extracted codes from the interview were returned to each interviewee to approve their accuracy. Confirmability and dependability of the results were ensured by peer debriefing and external checking.

Therefore, two observers reviewed and rechecked all transcripts, codes, and themes. Finally, this process completed with numerous discussions among the research team about areas of disagreement until reaching a final consensus. To enhance the transferability of the results, we tried to consider the maximum variation during sampling. We interviewed women with diversity in age, relationship status, education, socioeconomic status, and cultural background.

In qualitative research, generalizability is labeled as a full description of the setting, the participants, and the themes in rich detail through the lens of the outside reader. To attain dependability, the process within the study was described in detail. This study was undertaken as a part of a Ph. Moreover, Valiasr hospital managers willingly facilitated the study. Written informed consent was obtained from all the participants.

Direct quotes that are representative of the participants have been presented. Only the quotes used in the current manuscript have been translated into English. The characteristics of 20 women interviewed demonstrate the heterogeneity of the sample Table 1.

Half of participants had children and 70 percent 14 were married. Participants averaged Details in parentheses following quotes represent the participant's identification number. Many women reported seeking information about fertility and pregnancy from a range of sources, including the Internet social media, blogs and websites run by private laboratories and specialists , their healthcare provider, and other women with HPV.

They indicated that finding up-to-date trustworthy information was challenging. Most women preferred information provided by formal websites. Participants identified many fertility and childbearing concerns.

The three main categories extracted from the interviews were "concerns about fertility potential," "pregnancy concerns," and "non-pregnancy reproductive concerns" Table 2.

One of the most repeated concerns of HPV-positive women was fear of fertility impairment in both male and female patients mostly expressed by younger women who had pregnancy plans. Some participants had questions about the presence of the virus in semen, sperm, and penis skin. They showed concerns about the effect of HPV on male fertility. Does this virus get into my husband's sperm? Isn't it weakening his fertility? I'm worried, it's because of this infection that I haven't got pregnant these years" P.

Women with mixed HPV types whose husbands had genital warts GWs were mainly concerned about the importance of removing warts before conception. Participants were anxious and needed more information about the effect of papillomavirus on hormones and the reproductive system. I'm I have to get pregnant soon. I may lose my chance of getting pregnant. Does the virus affect my ovaries? Some expressed fear and anxiety about losing their fertility due to getting cancer following persistent high-risk HPV.

I'm convinced that I am going to get cancer and I might never be able to have a baby in the future. I'm depressed because I'm not sure I can preserve my ability to get pregnant. I asked my doctor; she said the virus could be in the semen. Women were concerned that therapeutic procedures cryotherapy, loop electrosurgical excision procedure LEEP , and conization might impact their ability to get pregnant.

A single woman who was about to have LEEP surgery for her cervical intraepithelial neoplasia CIN -2, expressed her concern as follows:. They doctors say there may not be a problem with this operation [LEEP], but there's. It can narrow the cervix and make it hard to get pregnant. All of those things run through your head. Few women were concerned about the potential effect of HPV vaccine on menstruation and fertility. Does HPV vaccine affect the period? Pregnancy for women infected with HPV had some challenges, mostly over personal health.

Participants also expressed worries about fetal harm and adverse pregnancy outcomes including miscarriage, preterm delivery and cesarean section. Most HPV-positive women with abnormal cytology results were anxious that weakening the immune system during pregnancy could lead to the virus persistence in their body, and worsen cervical abnormalities. This fear was so great that some who had decided to become pregnant soon changed their pregnancy plans, postponing them until their cytology and HPV results return to normal.

Now that my test results [Pap, HPV, and colposcopy] came abnormal, I think it's not an appropriate time for me to get pregnant. I'm afraid pregnancy will make my results worse. I'm going to wait for the virus to go away, and then get pregnant. Most sexually active men and women will have HPV at some point in their lives. About 40 types of HPV are sexually transmitted. In rare cases, HPV is a…. There are more than types of HPV — some low-risk and some high-risk.

Knowing the type of HPV you have can help determine if you're at increased…. Learn how you can successfully control your asthma, with tips for short-term relief, management techniques, medical treatments, and more. Health Conditions Discover Plan Connect. Is there a connection between HPV and fertility? How does HPV treatment affect female fertility? How does HPV affect male fertility? Is there a connection between the HPV vaccine and fertility?

Contact us. By clicking submit you agree to our privacy policy and terms and conditions. Click and collect in as little as 60 mins Choose collection at checkout and you can usually collect your treatment in as little as 1 hour from your local LloydsPharmacy. Men's health Main menu Men's health Erectile dysfunction Erectile dysfunction subscriptions Hair loss Premature ejaculation. Customer services Phone: Mon-Fri: 9am-5pm Sat: 9am-1pm. On this page. Reviewed by our clinical team The human papillomavirus, or HPV , is a virus that only affects humans.

Does HPV affect male fertility? Considering a HPV vaccine? Request vaccine. Authors and editors. What our patients say Trustpilot. Regulated and certified. Women with HPV also seem to be impacted using assisted reproductive technologies. A study published in Gynecological and Obstetric Investigation found women with HPV were six times less likely to become pregnant through intrauterine insemination than women without the virus.

Despite these studies, it is always worth investigating all your options if you want to have a baby. While you may not be as successful as couples without HPV, modern technology could still help you fulfill your dreams of having a family. Taking the HPV vaccine is totally safe and will not compromise your ability to have children in any way. If you are a woman, it might actually boost your fertility by reducing your chances of developing the precancerous and cancerous cells in your cervix that could compromise your fertility later.

A study published in Scientific Reports even found men who already had HPV had higher pregnancy rates after they were vaccinated, so it may be worth getting the shot even if you have the virus. This series of shots will help protect you from a range of strains of HPV.

Men and women up to age 45 can both get the HPV vaccine. Using condoms when you have sex is another good way to prevent contracting HPV. Women should also have regular smear tests, as HPV screenings are part of their procedure.