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| |  Half of High-Risk Girls Test Positive for HPV Before First Vaccination: Presented at ICAAC By Ed Susman SAN FRANCISCO -- September 16, 2009 -- A study of at-risk girls found that half of them were already infected with human papillomavirus (HPV) at the time they presented for a vaccination to prevent infection of the virus that may cause cervical cancer, according to researchers here at the 49th Annual Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy (ICAAC). "We believe doctors should promote vaccination of girls at age 11 to 12 years rather than waiting until later," said Jessica Kahn, MD, MPH, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio, in an presentation on September 14. "Most doctors now tend to suggest vaccination after age 12," said Dr. Kahn, "but that may be too late for many of these girls." Dr. Kahn and colleagues recruited 96 girls or women aged 13 to 21 years who presented at a physician's office for their first HPV vaccination. After they were inoculated, the patients were asked to fill out a questionnaire regarding sexual behaviour, demographics, and other lifestyle behaviours. Participants then had a clinician- or self-collected cervicovaginal swab that was tested for various HPVs. Fifty percent of the participants in the study were found to be positive for HPV infection of the types that are protected by the vaccine. The vaccine is not expected to protect women against HPV-caused disease if they are already infected at the time of inoculation. Dr. Kahn said that 70% of the subjects who admitted prior vaginal or anal intercourse were infected with HPV, adding that 12% of the participants who denied sexual intercourse were also positive for HPV infection. "People can be infected through touch without sexual penetration," Dr. Kahn said. Educating clinicians and parents about the importance of following national guidelines and vaccinating 11- to 12-year-old girls, before sexual initiation, should be a priority, said the researchers. The vaccine is approved for use in girls as early as age 9 years, but Dr. Kahn said that vaccination at age 11 or 12 might be a better strategy because the effects of the vaccine wane. However, whether a booster of the vaccine may be necessary later in life is not yet determined, although the possibility of infection with an HPV strain is life long. [Presentation title: HPV Epidemiology in Adolescents Receiving Their First HPV Vaccination. Abstract L1-1652]
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