EPIDEMIOLOGY OF HPV
Human papillomavirus (HPV) is the most common sexually transmitted disease in the world. It is estimated that at least 50% of sexually active people are at one time infected with at least one type of HPV. Due to advances in HPV genome mapping, there are now more than 75 recognized HPV types, 40 of which infect the urogenital area. HPV can infect men and women equally, but women are more likely to present symptoms of disease.

HPV is the causal agent of over 90% of all cervical cancer, the second leading cause of death among women worldwide. However, only 1-5% of women infected with HPV will develop malignancies. More often, HPV is associated with recurrent genital warts. It has been estimated that 1% of sexually active adults had visible genital wart infection, while 15% has a subclinical infection. While most of the research on HPV has focused on its association with cervical cancer or HIV infection, there is still much to be learned about its patterns of transmission and infectivity, especially in developing countries.

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