Illustration of the human papillomavirus Alexey Kotelnikov/Alamy
Nearly four times as likely are pregnant women who have been infected by the human papillomavirus, which causes cervical cancer.
According to Helen Trottier, a Canadian University researcher, the finding indicates that more teens will get vaccinated against HPV. This could lead to fewer premature births. Premature babies are smaller, more susceptible to infection and have a higher risk of developing other health problems.
Although HPV is not a sexually transmitted disease, most people can ignore it. However, it can persist and cause cervical cancer as well as anal, throat, and genital cancers.
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About a decade ago, most high-income countries began offering HPV vaccinations to teenagers. Although rates of genital warts are starting to decline, any impact on cervical cancer rates will take longer as it takes many decades to develop.
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Trottier was curious about the impact of the virus on pregnant women. Nearly 900 women were tested by her team for HPV in their vaginal fluids in the first and third trimesters of pregnancy. Nearly 42 percent of the women tested positive at the beginning, with two-thirds still carrying the virus at the end.
The chances of having HPV during pregnancy was 3.7 times higher for those who were positive at the beginning. Trottier says that we were shocked at the strength of this association.
The mechanism of premature labour is not clear if the virus is the direct cause. Trottier says that HPV does not cause inflammation. However, it could cause damage to the cells of the cervix making them more susceptible to bacterial infections.
Research done in Australia in 2007 that offered the HPV jab has shown that pregnant women in vaccinated age groups have lower rates of premature births than those in older age groups. This suggests that the virus is responsible. Trottier says that as vaccine uptake increases, the number of premature births will likely fall across the board. This will likely have a significant impact.
Journal reference: JAMA Network Open, DOI: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.25308
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