Characterization of genital human papillomavirus infection in women who have or who are at risk of having HIV infection

Abstract

Objective: The purpose of this study was to describe the prevalence of human papillomavirus infection and the likelihood of human papillomavirus expression and Papanicolaou test abnormalities among women who have and who are at risk of having human immunodeficiency virus infection.

Study design: Cross-sectional analysis of 767 women who had human immunodeficiency virus infection and 390 women who were at risk of having human immunodeficiency virus infection in 4 cities in the United States.

Results: Women who were infected with human immunodeficiency virus were more likely than women who were not infected to have human papillomavirus infection (prevalence ratio, 2.3; 95% CI, 2.0-2.8) but had similar human papillomavirus types. Among women who tested positive for human papillomavirus by polymerase chain reaction, human immunodeficiency virus infection was associated with a high level of human papillomavirus expression (prevalence ratio, 1.3-1.6) and multiple human papillomavirus infections (prevalence ratio, 1.9). However, among women with a high level of human papillomavirus expression or infection with multiple types, there was no association between human immunodeficiency virus serostatus and risk of cervical dysplasia.

Conclusion: Through its association with a high level of expression and multiple human papillomavirus infections, human immunodeficiency virus infection may increase the risk of cervical dysplasia in women who are infected with human papillomavirus.