Human papillomavirus 16 specific immunoglobulin g antibodies and its correlates among women attendees of selected hospitals in Southern Kaduna, Kaduna State, Nigeria

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Human papillomavirus type 16 (HPV-16) is one of the high-risk viruses that cause cervical cancers. Persistent infection with the virus leads to development of precancerous lesions of the cervix in infected women, which without medical intervention can progress to invasive cervical cancer. This study assessed HPV16-specific immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibodies in the serum of women attendees of General Outpatient Department (GOPD) at General Hospital Kafanchan and Kagarko in Kaduna State. This was a cross-sectional study. Structured, self-administered questionnaire was used to collect information and blood samples were also collected for testing. This was in addition to information collected from the laboratory analyzed. Five milliliters (5mls) of blood were aseptically collected from each of the 200 women, who had no history of HPV vaccination at the time of the study for the determination of HPV16-specific IgG antibodies using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay method. The sero-positivity for HPV 16-specific IgG antibodies among the women was 24.5%. The sero-positivity among women who had their first sexual intercourse at age 13-19 years was 37.6%, and it was significantly different from those who had their sexual debut at ≥20 years (14.8 %) (p=0.001). Sero-positivity also increased from 9.2 % in women with one lifetime sexual partner to 60.0% in those with multiple sexual partners(p=0.001). The finding showed that the women in this study have been exposed to the HPV-16 virus. Further study with a larger population of women in this locality to determine the level of susceptibility or immunity to HPV-16 is strongly advocated, among others.