Comparing the distributions of common Human papillomavirus genotypes among the Fars province population in the southwest of Iran, with the vaccine-included genotypes

Abstract Background Given the strong association between high-risk HPV genotypes such as 16 and 18 and cervical cancer, this study aimed to compare the distribution of common HPV genotypes among the southwest Iranian population with vaccine-included genotypes. Methods Based on the sample quality, DNAs were extracted from the biological samples of 8036 individuals who were included in the study with three different methods (automated instrument, column, and precipitation), and 21 different HPV genotypes were detected using Real-time PCR. Results The majority of participants were women (> 99%) with a positive rate of 29.9% in which the high-risk genotypes were dominant (84.9%). The highest rate of HPV infections was observed in the age ≤ 30 years (35.9%). HPV 6 and 16 were the most frequent low- and high-risk genotypes, respectively. Multi HPV infections were observed in 35% of positive samples and the highest cross infections were observed between HPV6 and 16. Co-infection with HPV 16 and 18 was observed in 21 (1%) positive samples. It seems that vaccination is required to decrease the outcome of HPV infections such as cervical cancer. However, other frequent high-risk genotypes were not included in the 9-valent vaccine. Conclusion Since the association between cervical cancer and other high-risk HPV types rather than 16 and 18 has been less studied, investigating their pathogenicity in cervical cancer is recommended. Furthermore, the new generation of HPV vaccine should contain the other frequent high-risk genotypes rather than those included in the approved vaccines.