Is oral contraceptive associated with genital warts?

OBJECTIVE

To measure the association between oral contraceptive use and the prevalence of genital warts in women.

METHODS

Cross sectional case control study comparing oral contraceptive use in women with and without genital warts attending a city centre genitourinary medicine clinic controlling for recent sexual activity, the presence of other sexually transmitted infections, socio-economic class and history of pregnancy using a multivariate logistic regression model.

RESULTS

After controlling for potential confounding variables women with genital warts were significantly more likely to be current users of the oral contraceptive pill (OR 1.7, 95% CI 1.3-2.2).

CONCLUSION

The study suggests that women taking the oral contraceptive may be at increased risk of presenting with genital warts. Previously published papers provide some support for this hypothesis and potential biological mechanisms are discussed.