HPV, sexual behavior associated with condyloma

Anic GM. J Infect Dis. 2012;205:789-793.

Researchers from the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute in Tampa, Fla., have found that human papillomavirus types 6 and 11, as well as recent sexual behavior, are strongly associated with incident condyloma infection.

Risk factors for condyloma were identified using data from the HPV in Men (HIM) study — a multinational prospective study of men aged 18 to 70 years that examines the natural history of genital HPV infection. Men completed study visits every 6 months for up to 4 years.

For the current study, researchers evaluated risk factors for incident condyloma in a cohort of 2,487 men from the United States, Brazil and Mexico. During a median follow-up of 17.9 months, 112 men developed condyloma. Cox proportional hazard models were used to examine associations between sociodemographic and sexual behavior factors and the risk of developing condyloma.

The strongest associations were found for infections with HPV types 6 and 11 (HR=12.42; 95% CI, 3.78-40.77). The incidence of condyloma was also significantly higher among men with an incident infection with nononcogenic HPV types (HR=3.62; 95% CI, 1.49-8.83).

The risk for condyloma also decreased with age. The rate of condyloma was similar among men aged 31 to 44 years and aged 45 to 70 years vs. men aged 18 to 30 years. The risk for condyloma also increased with an increasing number of female sexual partners.

Sexual behaviors in the previous 3 months were also associated with a high risk for condyloma: a high number of male anal sex partners, more frequent vaginal intercourse and infrequent condom use. Also influencing the incidence of condyloma was ever having a sexually transmitted infection and ever having a partner with condyloma.

“The strong association between recent sexual history and incident condyloma after accounting for HPV infection suggests that prevention efforts targeting behavioral modification may be effective at reducing condyloma incidence among men who have not received the HPV vaccine,” the researchers wrote.

Disclosure: Dr. Giuliano reports being on the speakers’ bureau and serving as a consultant for Merck. Another study researcher reports serving as a consultant for Merck Sharp & Dohme.

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