Ano-genital warts are more than benign lesions

Ano-genital warts are in general considered as benign lesions, as they are mostly caused by the non-oncogenic HPV types 6 and 11. In this review, there is a focus on the problematic issues, that these lesions and their treatments can cause. Both topical and ablative treatments are associated with side effects, and the varying effect of the treatments combined with an uncertain timeline to clearance are known to cause psychological distress. Vaccination against HPV-6 and -11 has been shown to reduce the incidence of this troublesome infection substantially in both women and men in countries with high vaccine coverage.