Prevalence and genotype distribution of high-risk human papillomavirus infection in women with abnormal cervical cytology: A population-based study in Shanxi Province, China

Abstract

Purpose: High-risk human papillomavirus (HR-HPV) infection is widely known as the major cause of cervical cancer and there are notable differences in HR-HPV prevalence and genotype distribution in different populations. Women with abnormal cervical cytology are at increased risk of cervical cancer; however, the genotype distribution of HR-HPV in women with abnormal cervical cytology remains unclear. Methods: A total of 2,300 women with abnormal cervical cytology (from 39,988 women completing a baseline survey in a cohort established during June 2014 to December 2014) were enrolled in this study. All participants gave informed consent and completed a questionnaire about characteristics related to HPV infection. HPV genotypes were identified using flow-through hybridization, and cytology was assessed by the ThinPrep cytological test. Data were analyzed using SPSS 22.0 for Windows. Results: The overall prevalence of HR-HPV in the 2,300 women with abnormal cervical cytology was 32%, with single and multiple HR-HPV infections making up 70.2% and 29.8%, respectively. The top-five HR-HPV genotypes were HPV16 (13.5%), HPV58 (5.7%), HPV52 (4.9%), HPV53 (2.5%), and HPV51 (2.3%). The prevalence of HR-HPV in atypical squamous cells of undetermined significance, low-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions, and high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions or higher was 30.8%, 36.5%, and 54.9%, respectively, showing an increasing trend with severity of cervical cytology (χ2trend=13.952, p<0.001). The prevalence of HPV16 and HPV33 increased significantly with the degree of cytological abnormality. HR-HPV infection risk was statistically higher in women aged 35–45 years, with low education, infrequent bathing, multiple gravidity, multiple parity, history of gynecological diseases, and premenopause. Conclusion: HR-HPV infection in women with abnormal cervical cytology was 32%, and the top-five HR-HPV genotypes were HPV16, HPV58, HPV52, HPV53, and HPV51 in Shanxi Province, China. These results shed light on demographic and behavioral characteristics related to HR-HPV infection in women with abnormal cervical cytology and provide an insight for the development of HPV vaccines.