A diagnosis of HPV and/or a related disease often carries a large psychosocial burden. Research indicates that having genital warts, for example, is associated with lower quality of life scores.

Anxiety, depression, pain, and discomfort have been shown to be greater for patients with warts.⁴⁴ Specific complaints include frustration with treatment regimens, feelings of shame, and worries about relationships.⁴⁵

Clinicians should be mindful that HPV diagnosis carries shame and stigma. In the 2010 STD treatment guidelines, the CDC recommends sharing the following information in patient counseling, as appropriate²²:

• Anogenital HPV infection is ubiquitous among those who are sexually active, with a majority of men and women likely to have an HPV infection at some point; having genital HPV is a normal and expected consequence of human sexuality
• The risk of HPV is similar in everyone, regardless of number of sex partners and history of other STDs; for this reason, Pap tests are equally important for all women, regardless of sexual history
• The virus is usually harmless, causes no warts, abnormal Pap test, or any other apparent abnormality, and in most cases will clear naturally over a few months; however, it is difficult to determine how long an individual may be able to transmit the virus to new partners
• Cancer is an uncommon outcome of infection, even with the oncogenic HPV genotypes
• HPV diagnosed within a relationship should not be construed as an indication of infidelity
• It is rarely possible to determine when and from whom any particular HPV infection was acquired; in general, it is not important to identify the source of infection
• HPV does not impact fertility and is unlikely to prevent a pregnant woman from having a normal vaginal delivery
• Latex condoms are moderately effective at reducing the risk of HPV transmission for any single exposure; however, because condoms do not cover all vulnerable skin areas, they do not completely eliminate the risk
• Sex partners of persons with diagnosed HPV infections do not need to be professionally examined and do not need to seek medical care unless and until they notice an abnormality, such as genital warts
• Immunization should be routine for all sexually active young persons in order to prevent infection with the most troublesome HPV types