High-Risk HPV Infection Linked to Increased Risk for CVD in Women

FRIDAY, Feb. 8, 2019 (HealthDay News) — High-risk human papillomavirus (HPV) infection is associated with an increased risk for developing cardiovascular disease (CVD), according to a study published online Feb. 7 in Circulation Research.

Eun-Jeong Joo, M.D., Ph.D., from Kangbuk Samsung Hospital in Seoul, South Korea, and colleagues examined the correlation between high-risk HPV infection and CVD development in a cohort of 63,411 women aged 30 years or older.

The prevalence of high-risk HPV infection was 7.6 percent. The researchers identified 1,122 cases of new-onset CVD during 261,598.9 person-years of follow-up (incidence rate, 4.3 per 1,000 person-years). There was a significant correlation for high-risk HPV infection with incident CVD, which persisted after adjustment for potential confounders and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hazard ratio, 1.25; 95 percent confidence interval [CI], 1.03 to 1.52). Individuals with obesity and those with metabolic syndrome (MetS) had a stronger correlation. For high-risk HPV-positive versus high-risk HPV-negative participants, the multivariable-adjusted hazard ratio was 1.10 (95 percent CI, 0.87 to 1.39) in nonobese women and 1.73 (95 percent CI, 1.19 to 2.51) in those with obesity. The corresponding hazard ratios were 1.09 (95 percent CI, 0.87 to 1.36) in those without MetS and 1.99 (95 percent CI, 1.28 to 3.08) in those with MetS.

“Further studies are required to identify the specific high-risk HPV genotypes that may contribute to CVD and implement vaccine strategies as a modifiable risk factor for the reduction of CVD,” the authors write.

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