What does an abnormal pap mean?

It doesn’t mean anything other than it wasn’t what they expected. Don’t panic. Lot’s of abnormal results have common reasons. Don’t buy any trouble. Wait for the next test.

Does this mean I got it from my boyfriend if I do have hpv?

I would have to do some research on hpv. Like it’s incubation time frame, etc. I wouldn’t jump to any conclusions just yet. I know they’re recommending males get inoculated against hpv.

@chelle21689 – not making light of HPV (had it – and later had cancer of the cervix, so believe me I’m aware of the possible health concerns related to HPV) ..but please understand it is VERY common – it’s like the common cold. Look at this quote from the CDC:
“HPV is so common that nearly all sexually-active men and women will get at least one type of HPV at some point in their lives.” and: “Approximately 79 million Americans are currently infected with HPV. About 14 million people become newly infected each year.”
(More info here)

Abnormal paps are a relatively commonly occurring thing – ask around with your female friends and family—I honestly don’t know anyone among my closest female circle that hasn’t had at least a few call backs for abnormal paps.

And, if it’s HPV there’s not really a treatment for it other than to remember to be extra vigilant to have your annual exam.

I had abnormal pap at age 22, ended up it was pre-cancerous cells and required an outpatient hour long visit to the dr, to burn out those cells. Didn’t hurt or anything at all, no meds.

Never had problems again and I’m 40 yrs old now. So don’t worry and don’t get mad at bf. :)

So how come I don’t know of any men with these issues just when? Shouldn’t men get checked out too? It seems they rarely do

@chelle21689 How many guys are going to admit they have warts in their throats or on their junk? Guys just aren’t as open about that stuff but women like us talk about everything seems like…ha!

http://www.cdc.gov/std/hpv/stdfact-hpv.htm

@chelle21689 I looked it up. HPV causes genital warts in males and females, but usually the body handles the virus. Two strains cause 75 percent of the cervical cancer in women, one causes 70 percent of the vaginal cancer. So men get it and pass it but it’s much more serious for women than men.
Edit: You’re right. They should be checking men out for this. How can we reduce the cases if there are guys out there unaware they’re spreading it?

I wanna know if I got it from my ex or bf >_<

@chelle21689 I don’t know if you can tell. If you got it from the ex you probably gave it to your boyfriend so he’s probably carrying it. So he’ll test positive either way. Also, hold off on pointing fingers til you know what it is, okay? Please?

=\

@chelle21689 Just remember it’s an infection, not a disease (not an STD). You may not have any repercussions at all, so try to calm down.

Sex without condoms is both parties responsiblity anyway, so you share at least 50% of the blame regardless.

Thanks

If it is HPV then yes it is likely you got it from a sexual partner. If your boyfriend is your first and only, then it was likely him. If you have been sexually active with other men then it could be from any of them. If the test your doctor did just looks for inflammes cells and other markers, it is not for sure HPV. They can do a test, just like getting a PAP smear, to look for what strain(s) of HPV you have. They mightt ask you to do a culposcopy where they paint your cervix with a vinegar solution and remove any areas that show signs of problems. It doesn’t hurt much, just a little uncomfortable, not nothing to panic about.

It is absolutely an STD if it is HPV. If you have the virus you have it forever latent. It can flare up at any time.

If you got it from an ex, then you might have given it to the next guy.

There is no test really that is done on men for HPV, women bare the entire burden. Although men do get cancer from HPV also in their mouths, tongue (think Michael Douglas) and anus.

@KNOWITALL actually that sort of thinking I blame for why women die. Knowing that you come from the bible belt, which I have always appreciated your opinions and perspective on many topics having that knowledge of the area and the people, the conservative outlook on sex and disease causes us to bury our heads in the sand about STD’s in my opinion. Girls don’t get PAP smears because they can’t figure out how to get to the doctor without their mom knowing, they don’t understand how dangerous sex can be for our physical health. People believe “good” people don’t get STD’s. I am not saying that about you, I am only saying beware of the mindset.

@JLeslie Genital human papillomavirus (also called HPV) is the most common sexually transmitted infection (STI). Everything I read says it’s not an STD, what are you reading?

Should I tell my ex that I have it (IF) and there’s a chance he might? He has a wife now. We are on good terms but don’t talk because his wife doesn’t allow him to talk to exes.

I have only been with two guys.

@KNOWITALL In my opinion the distinction is ridiculous. As far as I know the difference is STI means you are infected, but may not have active disease. So?

@chelle21689 In my opinion don’t bother. Something like over 80 million Americans have the virus. Everyone should assume they might have been exposed. I think the old estimate was about 80% of the population is exposed to HPV at some point inntheir life. But, it is a nice thing to do I guess if you want to tell him. Are you going to tell every new partner. If they do the genetic testing you will know if you have any of the strains most likely to lead to cancer.

So men aren’t affected by this? Unfsir

Absolutely, they are affected. They can get warts and cancer like women. Like I said, penile, tongue, anal, etc.

But I just read that there is no way to test for men and hpv?

@JLeslie To a panicked young woman, which is what I was during my procedure, a disease is much more serious than an infection. I’m trying to calm her down, this is not a huge deal.

@chelle21689 Right, no test for men.

@KNOWITALL I also don’t want her to be panicked, but I don’t want to lie. Saying something is an STI instead of an STD is no difference. Why is it different to you? Maybe you can explain it so I understand better. It looks like the OP has tissue changes, so it is no longer just something laying latent, so even with the slight difference in definition between STI and STD, looks like she very well has an STD. Honestly, I personally see no difference. We could say HIV is an STI before the person gets sick. Are you ok with that?

In my opinion this is just like we used to call it VD, then STD, now STI. Here is a link for you, since you asked about where it says HPV is an STD.

@JLeslie The link in the article I posted said it was an STI, not an STD. Other articles say it’s classified as both. Either way, in most cases, it’s not a big deal 70% resolve with no intervention at all.

It gave me pre-cancerous cells, they took them out, end of story. Still nothing to panic or worry about. So she learns to use a condom, no harm done.

Here’s another saying STI: http://www.med.nyu.edu/sti/content1248.html?cid=3

Have a great day.

@KNOWITALL I said the same. Colposcopy, they cut it out, all done. Don’t get upset, you sound angry?

@JLeslie I feel like you called me a liar and I don’t like that. It’s all good, peace.

Not at all. I don’t think that of you at all. In fact I said how much I appreciate your perspective and candor. I really apologize it came across that way. I fully believe you took the information as you read it to mean the OP had an infection and not an STD. What I was trying to say was I think itis semantics, and that HPV is sexually transmitted and that is the main point. The I or the D is insignificant in my mind, but I was willing to listen to why you think the distinction matters. I think when we try to tell young women something os not sexually transmitted it does them a disservice. I do realize you were acknowledging it is sexually transmitted, but I felt like, and I could be wrong, you were trying to take the possible shame away from it. That shame part is what sends me off, because I feel like it harms women especially. I think of women dying from breast cancer and could not talk about because we could not even say breast in mixed company, before Komen made it her life’s effort to change that and do research.

I said lie, meaning those who want to hide the facts, not that you want to hide the facts. It’s my mistake I was not clear enough. Those who don’t want to teach about it to young girls. I don’t think that about you at all. I just think maybe you are listening to what is being said to bury the realities. I’ve known for over 25 years HPV leads to cancer, yet most people didn’t have an inkling until Merck made a vaccine and wanted to sell it. Why is that? Literally, I knew women who had cervical cancer who did not know the relationship between HPV and cervical cancer, their doctors never explained it or didn’t know. I would want to know why; my risks.

Now my boyfriend is claiming he never had a sex partner before me and that she only gave him oral. I’m so mad at him and I don’t know what to believe. I just explained to him what I have without blaming him.

So either he’s been lying this whole time to me about having sex or is lying to me now to make him look better and he’s in denial that I can’t give it to him and he’s clean.

You will not be able to narrow down who gave who what if there has been oral and other sorts of sex. Like I said, people get it in their mouths. Michael Douglas had cancer on the tip of his tongue, which isn’t unusual for men. He probably aquired HPV giving women oral sex. This is why I said don’t bother telling, everyone should assume they have been or can be exposed to HPV.

Also, we don’t know you have HPV. Do we? We just know your PAP smear came back with something. Remember I used phrase like if it is HPV, as far as I know, you don’t have that confirmed. Again, the PAP is looking at the tissue and seeng inflammation and changes that can be caused by various things.

When I got the call that my pap was abnormal I was told I had moderate to severe Dysplasia. A LEEP was done a week later and I’ve been fine since then. That was 6 years ago.

I’ve never heard of the designation of STI. It may be new since I quit doing gynecology about 5 year ago.