Prevalence and distribution of human papillomavirus genotypes in women living with HIV: a cross-sectional study in Iran

Women living with Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) have reduced ability to clear human papillomavirus (HPV) infections due to decreased levels of CD4+ T lymphocytes. This study aimed to determine the Prevalence and Distribution of Human Papillomavirus Genotypes in Women Living with HIV: A Cross-Sectional Study in Iran. Eighty women living with HIV participated in this study. HPV DNA was extracted and universal primers (MY09/11 and GP5+/6+) were used in a single polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to detect HPV. Negative samples were re-amplified using GP5+/6+ primers in nested PCR. Finally, HPV-positive samples were genotyped using a Real-Time PCR kit. The data collected in this study were statistically analyzed using GraphPad Prism version 10.4 software. HPV prevalence among women living with HIV was 76.25%. High-risk (HR) and low-risk (LR)- HPV genotypes were detected in 67.21% and 31.14% of participants, respectively. Multiple HR-HPV infections were found in 71.42% of HPV-positive cases. The most common HR-HPV genotypes were HPV 39 (37.70%) and HPV 52 (36.56%). For LR-HPV genotypes, HPV 44 (13.11%) was the most common type, followed by HPV 6 (3.27%) and HPV 11 (1.63%). Abnormal cervical cytology was significantly associated with HR-HPV infection (14.63%, P-value = 0.026). No significant association was found between HPV prevalence and risk factors such as marital status, education level, age at first sexual intercourse, smoking history, CD4+ T lymphocyte counts or duration of Antiretroviral therapy (ART). Age had a somewhat significant association with the occurrence of HPV infection with a p-value of 0.051. HR-HPV and multiple HR-HPV infections were highly prevalent among women living with HIV in Iran. HPV 39 and 52 being the most common types in our study. Preventive measures like vaccination and regular screening may improve patient outcomes.