A RECENT study was conducted to investigate the combined impacts of human papillomavirus (HPV) and metabolic syndrome (MetS) on all-cause mortality risk across both male and female sexes.
HPV is currently the most common sexually transmitted infection, contributing to 4.5% of cancers worldwide. MetS is a collection of risk factors for cardiovascular disease, including obesity, hypertension, dyslipidaemia, and insulin resistance. With previous research suggesting that co-infection with MetS increases the persistence of HPV, Parmis Mirzadeh, School of Kinesiology and Health Science, Faculty of Health, York University, Toronto, Canada, and team, investigated this further, looking at the association between HPV and MetS co-infection on mortality risk.
Data for the study was taken from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Data collected included patient sociodemographic and medical histories, uniform dietary questionnaires, and participant laboratory examinations. For each participant, the researchers then analysed the following factors: age, ethnicity, sex, education, smoking status, and health insurance status. BMI was also analysed, generated from their height and weight. Both conditions, HPV and MetS, were then stratified in terms of cancer risk and condition severity.
Of the total 71,058 participants in the NHANES cohort, 5,101 met the study inclusion criteria, and were subsequently analysed. It was found that most of the sample displayed high-risk HPV (35% males, 31% females), or no HPV (34% males, 34% females). Notably, over an average follow-up of 9.4 years, high-risk HPV correlated to the most all-cause deaths (no HPV: n=46 deaths; low-risk HPV: n=60 deaths; probable HPV: n=37 deaths; high-risk HPV: n=97 deaths). Moreover, cross-clarification revealed an elevated mortality risk in females with high-risk HPV/MetS compared to the no HPV/MetS female participants.
Whilst these findings are significant, the authors noted several limitations to the study. Firstly, the study was representative of the American population, and therefore these results may vary in other global regions. Furthermore, as there is an existing disparity between males and females in HPV screening, there could be underestimation of male mortality risk. For the future, Mirzadeh commented: “Further work is necessary to separate the temporal, age, vaccination, and sex effects of HPV diagnosis in these relationships using prospective studies with detailed histories of HPV infection and persistence.”
