Prevalence, trends, and geographic distribution of human papillomavirus infection in Chinese women: a summative analysis of 2,728,321 cases
Cervical cancer (CC), primarily caused by human papillomavirus (HPV) infection, remains a significant global health concern. We aimed to comprehensively investigate the epidemiological status of HPV in China. Data from 2,728,321 women undergoing routine cervical examinations at 2127 medical institutions nationwide from January 2017 to June 2023 were analyzed. HPV genotype testing was conducted using HPV DNA typing kits. The overall HPV prevalence was 17.70%, with 13.12% classified as high-risk HPV (HR-HPV) and 4.58% as low-risk HPV (LR-HPV). Notably, HPV52 emerged as the most common carcinogenic type, followed by HPV58 and HPV16. Age-specific prevalence revealed a bimodal distribution, with peaks observed in women under 21 and over 61 years of age. Geographically, the south (19.48%) exhibited the highest infection rate, while the northwest (12.36%) had the lowest. Furthermore, HPV infection rates were higher during winter and spring. Although HPV infection rates have remained stable overall over the past 7 years, the infection rate in 2023 (14.76%) has declined relative to 2017 (16.17%) (P < 0.05). This study provides comprehensive insight into HPV epidemiology in China and guidance for future vaccine development and cervical cancer prevention strategies.