Viral load as a factor of persistence of papillomavirus infection in cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade I

Introduction. The viral antigenic load can influence the nature of the infectious response, leading to elimination of the virus or to chronicity of the process, and in some cases to the progressive course of the disease. The aim of the study was to investigate the relationship between the types of viral load of human papillomavirus and the age of a patient with cervical cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade I. Material and methods. 86 patients with cervical papillomavirus-induced cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade I by liquid oncocytology were examined. The frequency of human papillomavirus genotypes of high carcinogenic risk in this group of women was analyzed taking into account the viral load by polymerase chain reaction with real-time hybridization-fluorescence detection. The correlation between the viral load of the human papillomavirus and the age of the patient with further prediction of the regression or progression of cervical pathology was studied. Results. This study found that female patients under 30 years of age with cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade I associated with papillomavirus infection showed a decrease in viral load after 12 months of follow-up in 30.2%, and in patients with cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade I of older age — in 9.3%. Discussion. The management tactics for grade I cervical intraepithelial neoplasia associated with papillomavirus infection depends largely on the age of the patients and the degree of viral load. In young patients with immediate reproductive plans, a wait-and-see approach with dynamic observation for 12 months without drug therapy is possible in view of the probable spontaneous elimination of the human papillomavirus within a year. The results of the study suggest a higher rate of human papillomavirus elimination in cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade I in women under 30 years of age. Conclusion. In cervical intraepithelial neoplasia of degree I in women under 40, infection with several types of the human papilloma virus (16, 18, 31, 51) with a clinically significant viral load (over 4.69±0.07 HPV per 100,000 cells) was found most frequently. In the group of the older reproductive age (40-49 years old), HPV HCC is less frequent in 6.90%. And the predominant role belongs to type 16, which was spread in 69.7% of cases.