title: Human papillomaviruses in cervical specimens of women residing in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: a hospital-based study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Certain genotypes of human papillomavirus (HPV) are linked to cervical abnormalities. HPV DNA and genotype prevalence among women residing in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia is investigated in this hospital-based study.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cervical specimens were taken from 519 subjects along with consent and demographic data. DNA was extracted and PCR was performed on all specimens using general primers. Low- and high-risk HPV genotypes were determined by reverse blot hybridization assay using specific probes. SPSS version 17 was used for the data analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of 519 cervical specimens, 164 (31.6%) were positive for HPV DNA. There was a significant association between HPV positivity and abnormal cytology (p < 0.00001). Even though the HPV positivity was relatively high, the squamous intraepithelial lesions were minimal, with one low grade and one high grade case among those HPV DNA-positive specimens. Regardless of single or multiple infections per specimen, HPV-16 was found in 87.8%, followed by HPV-18 in 86%, and HPV-11 in 78.3%.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Amplification technology showed that HPV is common among women in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, with a strong association between HPV infection and cytological changes. HPV-16 was the most frequent genotype but had a low prevalence of cervical cancer.
authors.affiliation: King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. ahdal@kfshrc.edu.sa.
authors.forename: Mohammed N
authors.initials: MN
authors.lastname: Al-Ahdal
authors.forename: Walaa K
authors.initials: WK
authors.lastname: Al-Arnous
authors.forename: Marie F
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Bohol
authors.forename: Suhair M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Abuzaid
authors.forename: Mohamed M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Shoukri
authors.forename: Kamal S
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Elrady
authors.forename: Nayyer
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Firdous
authors.forename: Rehab
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Aliyan
authors.forename: Rabia
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Taseer
authors.forename: Amal A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Al-Hazzani
authors.forename: Ahmed A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Al-Qahtani
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D003584:Cytological Techniques; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D005260:Female; D005838:Genotype; D006761:Hospitals; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D009693:Nucleic Acid Hybridization; D027383:Papillomaviridae / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D030361:Papillomavirus Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000473:pathology / Q000821:virology*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D015995:Prevalence; D012529:Saudi Arabia / Q000453:epidemiology; D014626:Vaginal Smears; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D004279:DNA, Viral