The American Academy of Dermatology writes that molluscum contagiosum is a common skin disease which is caused by a virus. This virus is easily spread from person to person. People may get molluscum by sharing towels and clothing. Wrestlers and gymnasts may get this disease from touching infected mats. Also, skin-to-skin contact spreads the virus. Generally, the only sign of molluscum is pink or flesh-colored bumps on the skin. It has been found there is an increase in rates of this infection in people who shave their genitals. On March 18, 2013, Alan Mozes has reported for HealthDay, Craze for Hairless Genitals Accompanies Rise in Infections. There has been a hairless-body craze. People into this craze should be made aware that pubic hair removal could increase your risk for a pox infection, according to French researchers.
The researchers have suggested that skin irritation brought on by either shaving, clipping or waxing the genital area could explain the recent increase among healthy adults of a minor sexually transmitted virus which is called molluscum contagiosum. Dr. Francois Desruelles, of the department of dermatology at Archet Hospital in Nice, has said, "Genital hair removal has become a fashion phenomenon in the last decade. At the same time, the number of cases of molluscum contagiosum has risen." Desruelles has also said that this association needs to be confirmed by controlled studies. However, he believes the increasing popularity of genital hair removal, seen in both men and women, may raise the risk of molluscum contagiosum. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the rash which is associated with molluscum usually disappears within a year without treatment and without scarring.
Desruelle also thinks this practice may increase the risk for developing genital warts due to infection with papillomavirus. Medical News Today writes that in the majority of cases, young females infected with papillomavirus are not infected for long, and there is no long-term consequence. The CDC has said that over 70% of young female infections clear up within 12 months, while 90% do so within 24 months. However, in between 5% to 10% of cases, this infection persists and raises the risk of developing precancerous lesions of the cervix, which can eventually, over a period of five to ten years, develop into cervical cancer.
