Manifestations of anogenital HPV infection in the male partners of women with anogenital warts and/or abnormal cervical smears.

Abstract

The prevalence and manifestations of anogenital human papillomavirus (HPV) infection in 154 men, all of whom were the sexual partners of women with either overt anogenital warts or cervical HPV-related abnormalities, were assessed using clinical, histopathological and molecular criteria. Detailed examination of the anogenital region using a colposcope was supplemented by the use of 5% acetic acid to detect possible foci of subclinical HPV infection. Biopsies of warts and aceto-white lesions were examined histopathologically and by HPV DNA hybridization using radiolabelled HPV 6/11 and 16/18 DNA probes. More than two-thirds of the men had clinical indications of genital HPV infection: 37% had apparent macroscopic warts, almost invariably in combination with aceto-white lesions; while 34% had aceto-white lesions only. The overwhelming majority of these lesions (92%) were located on the penis only. However, only 49% of the macroscopic and 29% of the aceto-white lesions showed histological features consistent with a conclusive diagnosis of HPV infection; while the corresponding figures for HPV DNA positivity were 72% and 56% respectively. Current HPV infection was strongly associated with a past history of anogenital warts, but there was little or no correlation between the manifestations of HPV infection in the male and female sexual partners.