title: Prevalence of human papillomavirus infection among women in rural Nepal.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  In this study we aimed to determine the overall and type-specific prevalence of cervical human papillomavirus (HPV) infection and risk factors for such infection among women in rural Nepal, and to investigate the distribution of HPV infection by cervical cytology.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study was conducted among women aged ≥15 years in five rural villages within Kavre District in Nepal. Sociodemographic data and information on risk factors for cervical cancer were obtained through an interview, and a cervical specimen was collected for HPV DNA detection and typing using the Anyplex™ll HPV28 Detection system, and for Papanicolaou test.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Among the 1289 women in whom a valid HPV result was obtained the median age was 40 years (range 17-86 years). Overall, the HPV prevalence was 14.4%, 7.9% for high-risk and 6.5% for low-risk HPV types, and was similar between age groups. The five most common HR types were HPV-18 (2.3%), HPV-51 (1.2%), HPV-59 (1.1%), HPV-31 (0.9%), and HPV-16 (0.8%). The prevalence of high-risk types in women with and without abnormal cytology was 8.3 and 7.7%, respectively. HPV infection was associated with current smoking, formal education, and being married to a husband with at least one previous marriage.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This is the first population-based study to report the prevalence of a broad range of HPV types among women from rural Nepal. These data are crucial for development of preventive strategies to reduce cervical cancer burden in the country.
authors.affiliation: Department of Laboratory Medicine, Children's and Women's Health, Faculty of Medicine, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.|Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Dhulikhel Hospital/Kathmandu University School of Medical Sciences, Kavre, Nepal.
authors.forename: Sunila
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Shakya
authors.affiliation: Department of Cancer Research and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.|Department of Endocrinology, St Olav's Hospital, Trondheim, Norway.
authors.forename: Unni
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Syversen
authors.affiliation: Department of Endocrinology, St Olav's Hospital, Trondheim, Norway.|Department of Public Health and General Practice, Faculty of Medicine, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.
authors.forename: Bjørn O
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3837-2101
authors.initials: BO
authors.lastname: Åsvold
authors.affiliation: Department of Laboratory Medicine, Children's and Women's Health, Faculty of Medicine, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.
authors.forename: Anna M
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-8111-4338
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Bofin
authors.affiliation: Department of Laboratory Medicine, Children's and Women's Health, Faculty of Medicine, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.|Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, St Olav's Hospital, Trondheim, Norway.
authors.forename: Guro
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Aune
authors.affiliation: Department of Laboratory Medicine, Children's and Women's Health, Faculty of Medicine, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.|Department of Microbiology, St Olav's Hospital, Trondheim, Norway.
authors.forename: Svein A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Nordbø
authors.affiliation: Paropakar Maternity and Women's Hospital, Kathmandu, Nepal.
authors.forename: Karishma M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Vaidya
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Medicine, Dhulikhel Hospital/Kathmandu University School of Medical Sciences, Kavre, Nepal.
authors.forename: Biraj M
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Karmacharya
authors.affiliation: Department of Laboratory Medicine, Children's and Women's Health, Faculty of Medicine, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.|Department of Microbiology, St Olav's Hospital, Trondheim, Norway.
authors.forename: Jan E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Afset
authors.affiliation: Department of Laboratory Medicine, Children's and Women's Health, Faculty of Medicine, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.|Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, St Olav's Hospital, Trondheim, Norway.
authors.forename: Solveig
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tingulstad
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000302:isolation & purification; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D009390:Nepal / Q000453:epidemiology; D027383:Papillomaviridae / Q000235:genetics; D030361:Papillomavirus Infections / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015995:Prevalence; D012424:Rural Population; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology; D014626:Vaginal Smears; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D004279:DNA, Viral
keywords: Cervical cancer; Nepal; developing countries; human papillomavirus; screening; vaccination