Human papillomavirus infection in Brazilian women with normal cervical cytology

We examined the prevalence of human papillomavirus (HPV) infection in a sample of Brazilian women presenting normal cervical cytology. Possible interactions between patient characteristics and HPV infection were analyzed in order to provide background data to improve cervical cancer screening and prophylaxis. Cervical samples of 399 women, received for routine evaluation in the Health Department of Ouro Preto, MG, Brazil, were subjected to HPV-DNA testing by PCR with MY09/11 primers. HPV-positive specimens were typed by RFLP. A structured epidemiological questionnaire was administered to each woman. HPV prevalence among these cytologically normal women was 11%. Twelve viral types were detected, the most common being HPV-16, -6, -61, -83, and -66. HPV was more prevalent in younger women; high-risk viral types were detected in 61% of the infected women and 27% of the infected women had multiple HPV infections. Significant associations of HPV infection were found with age, literacy, residence, marital status, lifetime number of sexual partners, and parity. We detected a great diversity of HPV types in women with normal cytology. This kind of information about local populations is useful for HPV prevention and vaccination strategies.