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Women's Cancer Prevention and Management / Reproductive Tract Infections Research / Cervical Cancer and HPV Research · Journal article
PLOS One · September 9, 2026
Early or partial results. Treat as a signal, not a conclusion.
This cross-sectional survey of 317 HIV-infected women on antiretroviral therapy in Ethiopia reports a high-risk HPV prevalence of 32.2% (95% CI: 27.1–37.6%), with early sexual debut, multiple partners, and history of STI as independent risk factors, and longer ART duration as a protective factor. The findings are descriptive and geographically limited, suitable for informing local screening policy but requiring replication in other populations.
Institutional-based, cross-sectional survey. HIV-infected women of reproductive age attending antiretroviral therapy clinics in Nekemte town, Oromia, Ethiopia.. Intervention: Cervical HPV testing using Abbott real-time high-risk HPV DNA assay.. n = 317. Nekemte town, Oromia region, Ethiopia; single-centre study..
High-risk HPV prevalence 32.2% [95% CI: 27.1–37.6%] HR-HPV-16 single genotype infection 12.75%, HR-HPV-18 8.82%, other HR-HPV 62.7% Sexual debut before age 18: AOR = 3.54 [95% CI: 1.87–6.69]
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The findings support routine high-risk HPV screening in HIV-infected women on ART and suggest that comprehensive sexual health education and counselling targeting early sexual debut prevention may reduce HPV acquisition. Clinicians should consider that immune reconstitution with longer ART duration appears protective, supporting adherence emphasis.
Single-centre cross-sectional study of prevalence and associated factors in a specific population; provides descriptive findings without a control group or intervention, suitable for hypothesis generation and local planning but requiring confirmation in broader populations.
As stated by the source record.
Quoted from the source exactly as published.
The findings support routine high-risk HPV screening in HIV-infected women on ART and suggest that comprehensive sexual health education and counselling targeting early sexual debut prevention may reduce HPV acquisition. Clinicians should consider that immune reconstitution with longer ART duration appears protective, supporting adherence emphasis.
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Background Human papillomavirus is a deoxyribonucleic acid virus transmitted primarily sexually. Infection with high-risk human papillomavirus is recognized as the key cause of cervical cancer that is leftover as a public health problem globally. Human immunodeficiency virus infected women of a reproductive age who are on antiretroviral therapy are at higher risk due to debilitated immunity. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the prevalence of high-risk human papillomavirus and associated factors. Methods An institutional-based cross-sectional study that included 317 HIV-infected women of a reproductive age group attending antiretroviral therapy was conducted in Nekemte town employing a systematic random sampling technique. A structured questionnaire and record reviews were used to gather the data. Cervical specimens were collected from June to August 2024 and tested at Nekemte Public Health Research and Referral Laboratory using the “Abbott real-time high-risk HPV DNA assay”. The collected data were entered into Epi-data version 3.1 and exported to the Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 26 for analysis. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize the data, and logistic regression analyses were performed to identify the determinants. The odds ratio with a 95% confidence interval was computed to assess the presence and degree of association. Following multivariable model fitting, variables with a p-value < 0.05 after adjustment for multiple testing were considered statistically significant. Results The prevalence of high-risk human papillomavirus was 32.2% [95% CI: 27.1–37.6%], while a single genotype infection with HR-HPV-16, HR-HPV-18 and other HR-HPV accounted for 12.75%, 8.82% and 62.7% respectively. On a multivariate logistic regression, having sex before 18 years (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] =3.54, 95%CI: 1.87–6.69), multiple lifetime sex partners (AOR = 3.69, 95%CI: 1.96–6.96), and a history of sexually transmitted infection (AOR = 3.81, 95%CI: 1.93–7.51) were associated with higher odds of infection. Conversely, a longer duration on antiretroviral therapy was associated with lower odds of infection (AOR = 0.18, 95%CI: 0.06–0.54). Conclusion and recommendation The prevalence was high in the study area. Having multiple sex partners, early sexual debut, history of sexually transmitted infections, and shorter duration on antiretroviral therapy were determinants demanding inclusive intervention efforts. Health authorities hence, need to reinforce routine human papillomavirus screening and health education for human immunodeficiency virus infected women of a reproductive age who are on antiretroviral therapy.
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