Try Medisearch

HPV vs Herpes (HSV): Which Is Worse?

In this blog post, we will compare two viral infections HPV and herpes. Both are viral infections, however they are different in the symptoms, transmission methods and the severity of their impact on one’s health. Keep reading if you want to find out which one of these is the most sexually transmitted disease worldwide!

Frederika Malichová

Author - Frederika Malichová

Neuroscientist at the University Of Cambridge.

Frederika used MediSearch to find sources for this blog.
MediSearch gives instant answers to medical questions based on 30 million scientific articles.

Differences Between HPV and Herpes

HPV and Herpes are both viral infections but they differ significantly. HPV is a group of viruses. It is also the most common sexually transmitted disease worldwide. Herpes, on the other hand, is a group of viruses causing sores and blisters, primarily on the skin. While both are incurable, their symptoms, transmission methods, and impacts on health vary greatly.

What is HPV?

HPV is an acronym for Human Papillomavirus, which refers to a group of related viruses.

HPV is a double-stranded circular DNA virus from the family of papillomaviruses [1].

Interestingly, so far more than 200 types of HPV have been identified. Out of these, at least 40 have been found to be sexually transmittable [2, 3].

Usually, the virus is transmitted by skin-to-skin or mucosa-to-mucosa contact. Therefore it enters the body via cutaneous or mucosal trauma [1]. In addition to this, it can also spread through other intimate, skin-to-skin contact [4].

That said, HPV is the most common sexually transmitted disease worldwide. The risk of any individual being infected at least once in a lifetime in both women and men is 50% [1]. In particular, among young sexually active individuals, 75%-80% are expected to become infected in their lifetime [5].

...

Have more health questions?

LogoMediSearch gives instant answers based on 30 million scientific articles.

View all posts