Prevalence and genotype distribution of human papillomavirus infections in women attending hospitals in Chaozhou of Guangdong province.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Human papillomavirus (HPV) infection is the main cause of cervical cancer. Limited epidemiologic data of HPV prevalence are available for women attending hospitals in southern China. This study aimed to evaluate the profiles of HPV infection and cytology status in gynecological outpatients in Chaozhou City. METHODS: A total of 2833 eligible women were enrolled. The HPV GenoArray test was used for HPV detection and genotyping. Nearly one half of the HPV positive women received liquid-based cytology test. Logistic regression analysis was performed to assess the predictable effects of age and genotype for categories of abnormal cytology. RESULTS: The prevalence of overall, high-risk, and low-risk HPV infection were 24.5%, 19.5% and 8.4%, respectively. A U-shaped age-specific prevalence curve was observed in overall HPV and high- risk HPV, but not in low-risk HPV, which declined with age increasing. The 6 most common high-risk HPV type in descending order, were types 52, 16, 58, 18, 68, and 33. Age and HPV genotype were both important determinants of abnormal cytology incidence, the older women (>45 years) and those infected with HPV type 16 and/or 18 having the highest risk for abnormal cytology. CONCLUSION: Our findings support the hypothesis that second-generation HPV prophylactic vaccines including HPV-52 and -58 may offer higher protection for women residing in Chaozhou and neighboring cities in Guangdong.