Screening for High-Risk Oral Human Papillomavirus (HPV31, HPV33, HPV35) in a Multi-Racial Pediatric and Adult Clinic Patient Population

SIMPLE SUMMARY: Many previous studies have focused on the prevalence of high-risk HPV16 and HPV18 strains, highly associated with cervical and oral cancers covered by the original HPV vaccine. However, little research is currently available regarding the oral prevalence of other high-risk HPV strains, such as HPV31 and HPV33, which are part of the recently revised nine-strain HPV vaccine. This study conducted one of the first oral prevalence studies of these high-risk HPV strains among a multi-ethnic patient population at a public dental school in Nevada. The results of this investigation revealed a significant percentage of children and adults in this study harbored one or more of these high-risk strains, which were mostly found among patients within the recommended vaccination or catch-up age range (9–45 years). ABSTRACT: Many human papillomavirus (HPV) strains induce cancer in the cervix and the oral cavity. Although high-risk strains including HPV16 and HPV18 are commonly known, additional high-risk strains including HPV31, HPV33, and HPV35 may also induce carcinogenesis, and much less is known about their prevalence. Using an approved protocol, samples from a salivary biorepository were screened to find pediatric and adult samples from a multi-ethnic, university-based patient clinic population. A total of N = 86 samples from the saliva biorepository met the quality and concentration standards and were screened for high-risk HPV. qPCR screening of adult samples revealed n = 10/45 or 22% were HPV31- or HPV33-positive. In addition, a total of n = 9/41 or 21.9% of pediatric samples were either HPV31- or HPV33-positive (or both). No samples harbored HPV35. Most samples were derived from patients within the recommended vaccination or catch-up age range (age 9–45 years). These results demonstrated that a significant percentage of patients harbor additional high-risk HPV strains within the oral cavity, including HPV31 and HPV33. These data support oral healthcare provider recommendations for the newer nine-valent vaccine, which includes both HPV31 and HPV33.