Prevalence of Human Papillomavirus in the Oropharynx of Healthy Individuals in an Italian Population

Journal of Clinical Medicine

Luigi Baggi¹  Claudio Arcuri¹  Annalisa Palmieri²  Luca Scapoli²  Roberto Gatto³  Agnese Pellati⁴  Dorina Lauritano⁴  Francesco Carinci⁴ 

[1] Department of Clinical Sciences and Translational Medicine, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, 00113 Rome, Italy;Department of Experimental, Diagnostic and Specialty Medicine, University of Bologna, 40126 Bologna, Italy;Department of Life, Health and Environmental Sciences, School of Dentistry, University of L’Aquila, 67100 L’Aquila, Italy;Department of Translational Medicine, University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy;

关键词: human papilloma virus;    oropharynx;    oral cancer;   

DOI  :  10.3390/jcm11071935

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

Oral cavity and oropharynx cancer associated with human papil loma virus infection, particularly in young people who are continuously exposed to this virus, is a serious public health problem worldwide, especially for high-risk strains that are most associated with premalignant lesions and tumors. These neoplasms remain asymptomatic for a long time and, when they occur, they are already at an advanced stage. If diagnosed and treated early, oral cancer induced by human papilloma virus allows for high survival, as it often has a more favorable prognosis than oral cancers not directly related to viral infection. In this study, the presence of different high-risk and low-risk HPV strains was investigated to assess the epidemiological status in a population of healthy individuals. Two types of samples, one from the tonsils and one from the base of the tongue, were collected from 2015 healthy individuals of different sex and age. A total of 1885 DNA samples belonging to 1285 patients were tested for the presence of 11 high-risk HPV types plus 4 low-risk HPV types using real-time PCR. Of the patients’ DNA samples screened for 15 HPV types, only four samples were positive, all of which were taken from male smokers. These results indicate that newly acquired oral oncogenic HPV infections in the healthy population are rare and, in many cases, controversial. Therefore, more studies are needed to ensure fewer variations in outcomes and a greater clarification of HPV infection and its prevalence in the oropharynx of the healthy population, and to guide efforts to prevent the development of this infection which, if undiagnosed, can lead to the onset of malignant tumors in the oral cavity.

【 授权许可】

Unknown