Epidemiology and natural history of HPV among men

Human papillomaviruses (HPV) are double-stranded, DNA, epitheliotropic viruses that infect skin and mucosal membranes. Over 200 types of HPV have been identified and classified into alpha (α), beta (β), gamma (γ), mu (μ), and nu (ν) genera. HPV in the genus α mainly infect mucosal membranes, cause the majority of the ano-genital cancers, and are widely studied. However, epidemiology of HPV in the other genera, which mainly infect skin, is poorly understood. Few studies have reported the seroprevalence of cutaneous HPV among healthy individuals, and to date, no study has prospectively examined the association between cutaneous HPV seropositivity and development of external genital lesions (EGLs) in men. The objectives of this study were to estimate the seroprevalence of cutaneous HPV types and investigate factors associated with the seropositivity, and evaluate the association between seropositivity to cutaneous HPV types and the risk of development of EGLs. In conclusion, our data show that exposure to cutaneous HPV was common in men although different risk factors were independently associated with grouped and type-specific cutaneous HPV seropositivity.