Concurrent Cervical and Anal High-Risk Human Papillomavirus Infection in Women Living With HIV: An Observational...

To evaluate the prevalence and correlates of concurrent uterine cervical and anal HR-HPV infections in women living with HIV (WLHIV).

A cross-sectional study was undertaken at a tertiary care hospital and linked ART center.

One hundred and forty-one WLHIV and 161 HIV-negative women were enrolled for cervical and anal cytology as well as HR-HPV testing using the HC2 method. Screen-positive women were followed-up with colposcopy/anoscopy and/or repeat cytology. Appropriate statistical tests were applied to assess the association of concurrent HR-HPV with various parameters.

Concurrent cervical and anal HR-HPV infection was detected in 22 WLHIV (16.3%) and 5 HIV-negative women (3.1%), the difference being statistically significant ( P < 0.001 ). Among WLHIV, concurrent HR-HPV was associated with tobacco use ( P < 0.001 ), receptive anal intercourse ( P = 0.02 ), low CD4 counts ( P = 0.001 ), and negatively with ART intake ( P = 0.004 ) on bivariate analysis. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed a positive association of concurrent HR-HPV positivity with tobacco use ( P = 0.02 ) and low nadir CD4 counts ( P = 0.03 ).

WLHIV, especially those with CD4 counts less than 200/µL, should be offered HR-HPV screening and follow-up to detect cervical and anal lesions.