HealthDay News) — New research supports the recent U.S. recommendation for 2, rather than 3, doses of the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine to protect against genital warts in preteens and teens. The report was published in the June issue of Sexually Transmitted Diseases.

The new study assessed the prevalence of warts among 387,906 girls. The researchers determined whether they'd been vaccinated against HPV, and if so, how many doses they had received. 

Beyond the conclusion that 2 doses were just as protective as 3, the researchers found that both dose regimens offered much more protection against genital warts than a single dose or no vaccine at all.

"This study validates the new recommendations, and allows us to confidently move forward with the two-dose schedule for the prevention of genital warts," lead author Rebecca Perkins, MD, of the Boston University Medical Center, said in a center news release.

Vaccination may help prevent oral HPV infections linked to oral cancers, researcher says

HealthDay News — Human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination appears to confer a high degree of protection from oral HPV infections, according to a study scheduled for presentation at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, to be held from June 2 to 6 in Chicago.

Data from 2,627 Americans, aged 18 to 33, were analyzed to assess the effect of self-reported receipt of at least one dose of an HPV vaccine on oral HPV infection (vaccine types 16/18/6/11) prevalence.

The researchers found that the population-weighted prevalence of oral HPV16/18/6/11 infections was significantly lower in vaccinated versus unvaccinated individuals (0.11 versus 1.61%; P=0.008), which corresponded to an estimated 88.2% reduction in prevalence. For 33 non-vaccine HPV types, prevalence rates were similar (3.98 versus 4.74%; P=0.24). 

"When we compared the prevalence in vaccinated men to non-vaccinated men, we didn't detect any infections in vaccinated men. The data suggest that the vaccine may be reducing the prevalence of those infections by as high as 100%," study author Maura Gillison, MD, PhD, a professor of thoracic/head and neck medical oncology at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, said in a center news release. "But, unfortunately, because of low uptake of the vaccine, the burden of infection had only been reduced by 17% overall, and only 7% in men."

Gillison disclosed financial ties to several pharmaceutical companies.

Press Release
More Information