Low concordance of genital human papillomavirus (HPV) lesions and viral types in HPV-infected women and their male sexual partners

Abstract

Background and objectives: To evaluate the concordance of genital human papillomavirus (HPV) lesions and viral types in HPV-infected women and their male sexual partners.

Study design: Examination of 270 consecutive women with abnormal Papanicolaou (Pap) smear and their male partners using colposcopy, peniscopy, surgical biopsy and in situ hybridization (ISH). Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used in male cases negative with ISH.

Results: The highest HPV DNA detection rate in women was in cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN III) lesions (96%), HPV 16 being the most frequent type. Of the males, 193 (71.5%) showed histologically confirmed HPV infection, condyloma acuminata (23 cases) and penile intraepithelial neoplasia (PIN) lesions (20 cases) being invariably ISH positive (87% and 80%, respectively). Subclinical flat lesions (113 cases) were mostly ISH negative (70.3%). Of the 270 couples typed by ISH, both partners were positive in 66 (24.4%) cases, but only 15 (22.7%) of them had the same HPV type in their genital tract. By PCR, only seven new HPV DNA positive cases were detected among 77 men negative by ISH.

Conclusion: Although some association was seen between intraepithelial neoplasia and high-risk HPV types, the concordance of different HPV types between the sexual partners was extremely low. The female findings were not predictive in searching for the male partners with the high risk HPV types, either. HPV DNA detection rate in men seems to depend on morphology of the HPV lesions.