Treatment of external genital warts at Planned Parenthood Federation of America centers.
OBJECTIVE
To compare patterns and cost of treating external genital warts (EGW) at 5 major Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA) affiliates.


METHODS
Charts of 422 women and 78 men treated for EGW were reviewed. Treatment must have been successful and occurred at a single clinic. Data included anatomic site, number and dates of office visits, treatment modality and cost.


RESULTS
Women required average of 3.01 visits and average cost of $291.36 to reach clearance and males 2.35 visits and $301.81. Monotherapy TCA required 3.2 visits and $263.65 while cryotherapy alone required 3.3 visits and $481.97. Initial imiquimod monotherapy required 2.3 visits and $217.62. Combination therapy of imiquimod and trichloroacetic acid averaged 1.5 visits and $236.53. The largest reduction in visits and cost occurred in patients with multiple or recurrent EGW and those requiring >3 visits. From these data an EGW treatment algorithm was developed allowing more effective management and better utilization of health care resources.


CONCLUSIONS
In the PPFA clinic setting, imiquimod alone or in combination should be initial treatment for patients with multiple or recurrent EGW or for those who do not experience complete clearance by the third clinic visit when nonimiquimod therapy is first employed.
Fine
Paul
P
Planned Parenthood of Houston and Southeast Texas, Houston, Texas, USA.
Ball
Carol
C
Pelta
Murray
M
McIntyre
Cam
C
Momtaz
Michael
M
Morfesis
Johanna
J
Cullins
Vanessa
V
Rash
Robert M
RM
D000328:Adult; D000634:Aminoquinolines / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000998:Antiviral Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D003218:Condylomata Acuminata / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000191:economics*; D017679:Cryotherapy / Q000379:methods; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D005260:Female; D017048:Health Care Costs; D006801:Humans; D000077271:Imiquimod; D008297:Male; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014238:Trichloroacetic Acid / Q000627:therapeutic use; D014481:United States; D014837:Voluntary Health Agencies / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data
D000634:Aminoquinolines; D000998:Antiviral Agents; D014238:Trichloroacetic Acid; D000077271:Imiquimod