PREVALENCE OF HUMAN PAPILLOMAVIRUS DNA IN FEMALE CERVICAL LESIONS FROM RIO-DE-JANEIRO, BRAZIL

A hundred-sixty paraffin-embedded specimens fr om female cervical lesi ons were examined for human papillomavirus (HPV) types 6, 11, 16 and 1 8 infections by non-isotopic in situ hybridization. The data were comp ared with histologic diagnosis. Eighty-eight (55%) biopsies contained HPV DNA sequences. In low grade cervical intraepithelial neoplasias (C IN I), HPV infection was detected in 78.7% of the cases, the benign HP V 6 was the most prevalent type. HPV DNA was detected in 58% of CIN II and CIN III cases and in 41.8% of squamous cell carcinomas (SCC). His tologically normal women presented 20% of HPV infection. Oncogenic HPV was found in 10% of these cases, what may indicate a higher risk of d eveloping CINs and cancer Twenty-five percent of the infected tissues contained mixed infections. HPV 16 was the most common type infecting the cervix and its prevalence raised significantly with the severity o f the lesions, pointing its role in cancer pathogenesis. White women p resented twice the cervical lesions of mulatto and African origin wome n, although HPV infection rates were nearly the same for the three gro ups (approximately 50%). Our results showed that HPV typing by in situ hybridization is a useful tool for distinguishing between low and hig h risk cervical lesions. Further studies are required to elucidate ris k factors associated with HPV infection and progression to malignancy in Brazilian population.