Human papillomavirus infection and associated factors for cervical intraepithelial neoplasia in women living with HIV in China: a cross-sectional study.

OBJECTIVE

Women living with HIV (WLHIV) face disproportionately higher risks of acquiring human papillomavirus (HPV) compared with HIV negative counterparts. We aimed to investigate the prevalence of HPV in WLHIV in Chinese hospital setting and identify associated factors to the progression of late-stage cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN2+) in this population.

METHOD: This retrospective study collected data from 183 WLHIV on antiretroviral treatment (ART), based on reproductive health questionnaires. Gynaecological examination results including serum (for HIV viral load, CD4 T-cell count, hepatitis B infections, syphilis) and vaginal swabs for common bacterial sexually transmitted infections (STIs). Multivariate-logistic regression was applied to analyze the contributing factors to CIN2+.

RESULTS

HIV coinfection with other Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) were observed in 99 participants (54.1%, (99/183)). HPV (43.7% (80/183)) was the most prevalent STI. The three most prevalent HPV subtypes were all high-risk HPV (HR-HPV), including HPV52 (33.8% (27/80)), HPV58 (21.3% (17/80)) and HPV33 (13.75% (11/80)). About a third (37.5%, 30/80) of women with HPV had HR-HPV. Multiple HPV coinfections were common in HIV-HPV coinfected women (41.3%, 33/80). Cytological examinations revealed that 77.5% (62/80) HPV+ women had detectable cervical lesions. In comparison, only 4.9% (5/103) HPV negative womenwith Atypia and 1.0% (1/103) with CIN1 were diagnosed. Multivariate logistic regression revealed that HPV16 (OR=19.04, 2.53 to 122.92; p=0.004) and HPV18 (OR=11.54, 1.45 to 91.64; p=0.021) infections were significantly associated with CIN2+ in HIV-HPV coinfected women.

CONCLUSION

A high prevalence of HPV was found in women on ART. HPV16/18 infection are strong associated factors to CIN2+ in HIV-HPV coinfected women.