Anal and oral human papillomavirus infection in men who have sex with men: implications for risk-targeted vaccination

Aim: Men who have sex with men (MSM) harbor a significant burden of human papillomavirus (HPV)-related diseases that could be prevented by vaccination. Materials & methods: Prevalence of HPVs targeted by the quadrivalent (4vHPV) and nonavalent vaccines (9vHPV) was assessed in anal (n = 443) and oral (n = 193) specimens of immunocompetent, sexually active MSM, using the Linear Array. Results: Of the anal samples, 34.1 and 46.0% were positive for at least one genotype of those covered by the 4vHPV and 9vHPV, respectively. At least one of the HPVs targeted by the 9vHPV was detected in 5.7% of the oral specimens. Conclusion: The majority of the subjects were not currently infected by HPV-16 and other vaccine-preventable HPVs. Universal HPV vaccination should be strongly promoted in order to achieve protection for all risk groups. In the meanwhile, vaccination should be offered to sexually active adult MSM attendees of sexually transmitted infection centers, although its potential benefit for these subjects needs to be further investigated.