Oral Human Papillomavirus Infection in Children during the First 6 Years of Life, Finland.

Stina Syrjänen,Jaana Rautava,Jaana Willberg,Seija Grénman,Kari Syrjänen,Anna Paaso,Marjut Rintala,Hanna Koskimaa,Karolina Louvanto,Marja Sarkola

doi:10.3201/eid2703.202721

Abstract

Human papillomavirus (HPV) infections are found in children, but transmission modes and outcomes are incompletely understood. We evaluated oral samples from 331 children in Finland who participated in the Finnish Family HPV Study from birth during 9 follow-up visits (mean time 51.9 months). We tested samples for 24 HPV genotypes. Oral HPV prevalence for children varied from 8.7% (at a 36-month visit) to 22.8% (at birth), and 18 HPV genotypes were identified. HPV16 was the most prevalent type to persist, followed by HPV18, HPV33, and HPV6. Persistent, oral, high-risk HPV infection for children was associated with oral HPV carriage of the mother at birth and seroconversion of the mother to high-risk HPV during follow-up (odds ratio 1.60–1.92, 95% CI 1.02–2.74). Children acquire their first oral HPV infection at an early age. The HPV status of the mother has a major impact on the outcome of oral HPV persistence for her offspring.

Highlights

Cutaneous warts are common in children and are acquired mostly through horizontal transmission, and through vertical transmission; lesions can persist asymptomatically for years [1]
Our study focused on oral Human papillomavirus (HPV) infections among the 331 infants born to the 329 mothers in the Finnish Family HPV Study cohort
We found that the prevalence of HPV and multiple-type infections was highest and the spectrum of HPV genotypes was widest at birth

Summary

Introduction

Cutaneous warts are common in children and are acquired mostly through horizontal transmission, and through vertical transmission; lesions can persist asymptomatically for years [1]. Certain mucosal HPVs (α-HPVs) have been found in virgins, infants, and children in oral and genital mucosa, implicating a nonsexual mode of transmission [2,3,4,5,6]. Nonsexual HPV transmission modes includes vertical or horizontal transmission and autoinoculation (i.e., multisite HPV infections, which can spread from 1 site to another within an individual). Meta-analysis of 3,128 mother–child pairs showed that children born to HPV-positive mothers were 33% more likely to be HPV positive than children born to HPV-negative mothers [6]. This risk was even higher (45%) when only high-risk HPV infections were considered [6]. The main aims of this study were to characterize oral HPV prevalence and genotype variation in children in Finland and determine infection outcomes during the first 6 years of life

Objectives

Methods

Results

Conclusion