A comparative study of cervical cytology, colposcopy and PCR for HPV in female sex workers in Singapore

This study examined the prevalence of human papillomavirus (HPV) infection in a cohort of female sex workers in Singapore. HPV infection was diagnosed by clinical examination, Papanicolaou (Pap) smears, histology and polymera se chain reaction (PCR). One hundred and eighty-seven female sex workers wh o came for their routine medical screening were enrolled into the study. PC R was positive for HPV in 27 (14.4%), 20 of these had a single HPV type det ected, while 7 had multiple types of HPV detected. The most common HPV type s identified were types 16, 58 and 18. In conclusion, HPV infection is mode rately prevalent among sex workers as tested by PCR, but routine screening with Pap smears does not appear to be a sensitive method of diagnosis for H PV infection.