title: Sexual habits and human papillomavirus infection among females in three New Independent States of the former Soviet Union.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  On a global scale, the New Independent States (NIS) of the former Soviet Union have an intermediate incidence of cervical cancer, the main etiologic factor of which is human papillomavirus (HPV), a major sexually transmitted disease (STD). Recently, the prevalence of all STDs has exploded in these countries.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The goal of this study was to examine the sexual habits and HPV prevalence among females in three NIS countries.
  
  
  METHODS
  In this multinational (European Community-funded) trial, a series of 3,175 consecutive female patients were examined for HPV status (by Hybrid Capture II) at six clinics in Russia, Belarus, and Latvia. A meticulous survey of their sexual habits and other potential risk factors of HPV infections was made by structured questionnaire.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Three categories of patients were examined: those attending STD clinics (n=722), gynecological patients (n=761), and those who participated in cervical cancer screening (n=1,692). These three categories were significantly differentiated by a large number of key variables, including the HPV detection rate (44.9% of STD patients, 39.8% of gynecological patients, and 24.5% of those who were screened). A wide variety sexual habits of these subjects were predictors of the HPV status in univariate analysis. Binary logistic regression analysis found that six different variables remained as independent predictors of HPV status. Patient category (STD) and (young) age were two highly significant predictors of increased risk (P<0.0001), whereas having a nonsmoking partner and having zero or one partner during the past 2 years were significant protective factors (P=0.004 and P=0.007, respectively).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The results of this study indicate that women and girls in these NIS countries are conservative in many key characteristics of "high-risk" sexual behavior, such as age at onset of sexual activity, number of partners, and casual sex partners. HPV-positive and HPV-negative groups are clearly distinguished by the same variables identified as the key risk factors of HPV infection and cervical intraepithelial neoplasia in Western countries.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral Pathology, Institute of Dentistry, and MediCity Research Laboratory, Faculty of Medicine, University of Turku, Turku, Finland. stina.syrjanen@utu.fi
authors.forename: Stina
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Syrjänen
authors.forename: Irena
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Shabalova
authors.forename: Nicolaj
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Petrovichev
authors.forename: Vladimir
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Kozachenko
authors.forename: Tatjana
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Zakharova
authors.forename: Julia
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Pajanidi
authors.forename: Julia
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Podistov
authors.forename: Galina
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Chemeris
authors.forename: Larisa
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Sozaeva
authors.forename: Elena
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Lipova
authors.forename: Irena
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Tsidaeva
authors.forename: Olga
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Ivanchenko
authors.forename: Alla
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pshepurko
authors.forename: Sergej
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Zakharenko
authors.forename: Raisa
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Nerovjna
authors.forename: Ludmila
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Kljukina
authors.forename: Oksana
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Erokhina
authors.forename: Marina
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Branovskaja
authors.forename: Maritta
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nikitina
authors.forename: Valerija
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Grujnberga
authors.forename: Alexandr
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Grujnberg
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Juschenko
authors.forename: Bo
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Johansson
authors.forename: Piero
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Tosi
authors.forename: Marcella
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cintorino
authors.forename: Rosa
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Santopietro
authors.forename: Kari
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Syrjänen
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002031:Bulgaria / Q000453:epidemiology; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000032:analysis; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007844:Latvia / Q000453:epidemiology; D027383:Papillomaviridae / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D030361:Papillomavirus Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D012426:Russia / Q000453:epidemiology; D012725:Sexual Behavior; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014412:Tumor Virus Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology
chemical_list: D004279:DNA, Viral