EPIDEMOLOGY

HOW MANY PEOPLE HAVE
THE HUMAN PAPILOMA VIRUS?

It is estimated that in the European Community in 2005 there were 195 million women
over 15 years of age, of whom:

  • 15.5 million women were carriers of HPV DNA.
  • 2 million women with acuminate conditions (AC)
  • 2 million with low grade squamous epithelial lesions (LSIL)
  • 95,000 women with epi – High-grade squamous cell (HSIL)

As a result, it can be estimated that 20 million women over 15 years of age, out of 195 million registered in the European Union (10.3% of the population in this age group), have at some time in their lives a genital condition, clinical or subclinical, attributable to HPV infections or any of its neoplasms.

Among the most recent studies carried out in Spain, we highlight:

A random sample of 973 women, mostly monogamous, with an average age of 43 years (+/- 16 years) and a prevalence of 3%.

A study of 1,368 women who attended a gynecological or family planning visit showed an overall prevalence of 8.3%, of which the majority (87%) of the women were high-risk HPV, with age groups of:
< 30 years: 11.2%
30 – 49 years: 7.2%
> 50 years: 3.4%.

    • The human papillomavirus represents one of the most common sexually  transmitted infections.
    • Infection of the virus tends to cure in 90% of cases.
    • Sexually active young people aged 18 to 25 are considered to be HPV positive.
      In most cases it is an infection that has no symptoms.
    • In the developing countries cervical cancer is the most common cancer.
    • In Spain cervical cancer is the second most frequent gynecological cancer.