Prevalence of sexually transmitted diseases, HIV, and hepatitis among male sex workers in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

Background: This study determined the prevalence of HPV infection inmen andwomen in north-east Croatia and the association betweenhigh-riskHPVgenotypeswith age, sex andbehavioral risk factors. Methods: From December 2007 to December 2011, 2521 clinical specimens (436 urethral swabs from men and 2085 cervical swabs) collected in the Osijek-Baranya County Institute of Public Health and gynecologist’s offices from symptomatic patients were tested for high-risk HPV infection using the AMPLICOR HPV test (Roche Diagnostics). Subsequently, 301 HR HPV-positive samples were genotyped by the Linear Array HPV Genotyping Test (Roche Diagnostics). Results: High-risk HPV infection was significantly more prevalent in women than in men of all age groups (52% vs. 31%); its highest prevalence was found in 21-25 year-old women (62%) and 25–30 year-oldmen (26%). Themost common high-risk HPV genotype was HPV 16 (18.8%) followed by HPVs 51, 31, 52, 39, 66, 6, 16, 62, 33, 58, 45 and 56. Multiple HPV infection was detected in 46.2% of all high-risk HPV-positive subjects (139 out of 301). Unmarried status, >1 sexual partner in the past year, active smoking and cervical neoplasia positively correlatedwith HPV infection. When compared to neighbouring European countries, HPV subtype 52 was more prevalent in our population (6.1% vs 1.4–5%) while HPV 18 was significantly lower (3.8% vs 5–30%). Conclusion: In conclusion, this study showed unexpectedly high HPV prevalence in the young population of north-east Croatia. For this reason,mass vaccination against HPVs of youngwomen and men in north-east Croatia is highly recommended.