title: Early effects of human papillomavirus vaccination in Belgium.
abstract: Human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination has been reimbursed in Belgium since 2007 for girls (12-15 years), extended to girls up to 18 years in 2008. This study assesses the trend of HPV 16/18 infections in women less than 25 years of age participating in opportunistic cervical cancer screening. A significant reduction in the prevalence of HPV 16 [relative risk (RR)=0.61, 95% confidence interval=0.39-0.95] and a nonsignificant reduction in HPV 18 (RR=0.65, 95% confidence interval=0.29-1.48) was found in the youngest group (15-19 years). The prevalences in the older age group did not change significantly. These findings show the early effects of HPV vaccination and confirm the effectiveness of immunization in a real-life setting.
authors.affiliation: aInternational Centre for Reproductive Health (ICRH), Ghent University bDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Ghent University Hospital, Ghent cSonic Health Care/AML, Antwerp dUnit of Cancer Epidemiology, Scientific Institute of Public Health, Brussels, Belgium.
authors.forename: Mireille
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Merckx
authors.forename: Davy
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Vanden Broeck
authors.forename: Ina
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Benoy
authors.forename: Christophe
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Depuydt
authors.forename: Steven
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Weyers
authors.forename: Marc
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Arbyn
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001530:Belgium / Q000453:epidemiology; D015331:Cohort Studies; D055088:Early Detection of Cancer; D005260:Female; D052162:Human papillomavirus 16; D052161:Human papillomavirus 18; D006801:Humans; D065006:Papanicolaou Test; D030361:Papillomavirus Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000821:virology; D053918:Papillomavirus Vaccines / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D016012:Poisson Distribution; D015995:Prevalence; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D002583:Uterine Cervical Neoplasms / Q000517:prevention & control*; D014626:Vaginal Smears; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D053918:Papillomavirus Vaccines