Human papillomavirus: the usefulness of risk factors in determining who should get vaccinated

Vaccination against human papillomavirus (HPV) promises to dramatically decrease the incidence of HPV-related diseases, including cervical cancer. Although this vaccine is recommended by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices and The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists for all age-eligible women, challenges related to the vaccine's high cost and the difficulty in reaching some patients for vaccination may make implementation of this recommendation difficult. As an alternative strategy, some may consider targeting HPV vaccines to specific patients based on their risk for HPV infection or HPV-related disease. This article reviews what is known about risk factors for HPV, and discusses why using risk factors as the basis for targeting HPV vaccination is unlikely to be a viable vaccination strategy.