Human papillomavirus infection: an Anonymous Prevalence Study in South Wales, UK

The objective of this study was to describe human papillomavirus ( HPV) prevalence in South Wales in relation to age, cytology and social deprivation. This was an unlinked, prospective, anonymous, population- based study. DNA was purified from 1911 liquid- based cytology samples ( mean age 37.7 years, cytology 93.2% negative, social deprivation average score 17.9) using quality assured techniques and the presence of virus determined by PCR- Enzyme Immuno Assay ( PCR- EIA). 209 ( 10.9%) samples contained highrisk ( HR) HPV infection of which 36.4% had multiple HR- HPV types. The most frequent HR types were HPV 16 ( 19.6%), HPV 35 ( 9.5%), HPV 66 ( 9.2%), HPV 59 ( 8.5%) and HPV 56 ( 7.6%). There was a strong association between HPV infection and cytological abnormality. Significantly more HR- HPV infections were detected in women under the age of 30 years ( 68.9% of all HR- HPV infections Fisher's exact test P = 0.0001) compared to 30 years and above. There was no difference in HPV prevalence between different socioeconomic groups. The data presented suggest a different HPV type distribution in South Wales in comparison to that reported for other populations.