Treatment failure of genital condylomata acuminata in women: role of the male sexual partner.

The male sexual partners of women with genital condylomata acuminata are thought to be carriers of human papillomaviruses. It is therefore often recommended that both sexual partners be treated. We studied 360 women with genital warts to test the hypothesis that when the male partners of women with condylomata acuminata are treated, the treatment failure rate decreases. The male sexual partners of 180 of these women were examined and, if indicated, treated (treatment group). The 180 remaining male sexual partners were neither examined nor treated (control group). One hundred twenty-two (68%) men in the treatment group had human papillomavirus-associated lesions. The treatment failure rate of women was 16.7% in the treatment group and 18.9% in the control group. The difference is not statistically significant (p greater than 0.05). The results of this study do not support the hypothesis that the treatment failure rate of women with condylomata acuminata decreases if their male sexual partners are also treated.