PREVALENCE OF HPV IN ASYMPTOMATIC PATIENTS IN THE EXTREME WEST OF SANTA CATARINA

The human papillomavirus (HPV) is the most common sexually transmitted virus in the world and is considered a risk factor for developing cervical cancer. The objective of this study was to observe the sensibility to detect the presence of HPV by PCR in samples of cervical material, compared to cytologic results and determine the viral prevalence in asymptomatic patients in the extreme west of Santa Catarina. For this study were sampled 496 women living in the extreme west region of Santa Catarina. The samples underwent cytologic test and the PCR technique. The results showed which 12.7% of samples were positive for the presence of viral DNA by PCR test, while that the cytologic tests detected cellular changes in 2.4% of the samples. The results demonstrate that the use of molecular techniques for proving the presence of HPV is significantly more sensitive than cytological tests (P < 0.0001). The prevalence found in this study was within the pattern found in other studies, which ranged from 10.6% to 17%.