Trends in the molecular epidemiology of human papillomavirus in males from the plateau region of Southwest China: an 11-year retrospective analysis (2014-2024).

Background: Persistent high-risk human papillomavirus (HR-HPV) infection may increase the risk of malignancies in males, including penile, rectal, anal, prostate, bladder, and oropharyngeal cancers. However, few studies focused on the epidemiology of human papillomavirus (HPV) in male patients. This study aims to retrospectively investigate the trends of HPV molecular epidemiology in males residing in the plateau region of Southwest China from 2014 to 2024.

Methods: This retrospective study investigated the trends of HPV molecular epidemiology in 3580 males residing in the plateau region of southwest China from 2014 to 2024. Samples were collected for DNA extraction, and detection of 27 HPV genotypes by Luminex xMAP technology.

Results: HPV prevalence fluctuated between 43.17% and 56.02% over the 11 years, with an average prevalence of 50.28% (1800/3580, 95% CI: 48.64%-51.92%). Among infected individuals, LR-HPV alone, HR-HPV alone, and mixed infection accounted for 71.00%, 9.83%, and 19.17%, respectively. Single, dual, triple, quadruple, and other multiple infections accounted for 73.22%, 18.28%, 5.33%, 2.22%, and 0.95%, respectively. HPV prevalence varied by clinical diagnosis: the highest in warts (76.99%, 1114/1447), followed by neoplasms (67.15%, 92/137), other diagnoses (39.10%, 364/931), rash (30.17%, 73/242), urinary inflammation (24.23%, 47/194), and asymptomatic individuals (17.49%, 110/629). Age-specific HPV prevalence exhibited a U-shaped bimodal pattern. The top five HR-HPV genotypes were HPV16 (2.35%), HPV59 (2.18%), HPV52 (1.68%), HPV56 (1.54%), and HPV39 (1.48%), while the top three LR-HPV genotypes were HPV6 (26.45%), HPV11 (16.82%), and HPV43 (1.98%). The coverage rates of the currently available bivalent, quadrivalent, and nonavalent HPV vaccines were 5.18%, 66.84%, and 73.17%, respectively. However, these vaccines do not cover HPV51, HPV39, HPV59, HPV56, HPV53, HPV43, and HPV61, which are highly prevalent genotypes in the Chinese population.

Conclusion: These findings highlight the urgent need for developing and promoting HPV vaccines tailored to the Chinese population and accelerating HPV vaccination programs among adolescents. Integrating male HPV vaccination into the national immunization program could significantly reduce the burden of HPV-related infections and diseases.