Human papillomavirus in pregnant women at Bowen University Teaching Hospital, Ogbomoso, Nigeria

ABSTRACT Background: Trans-placental transmission of human papillomavirus infection during pregnancy and burden of cervical cancer is increasing in Nigeria. However, studies on the prevalence of HPV among pregnant women are limited in Ogbomoso. Materials and Methods: A total of 93 pregnant women attending the antenatal clinic of Bowen University Teaching hospital in the age range 20–45 years consented for the study. All sera were tested for the presence of IgM antibodies against HPV using a third generation Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay. Chi-square test was used to assess the association between the socio-demographic variables and HPV status. Statistical significance was set at P ≤ 0.05. Results: The overall seroprevalence of HPV was 5.38% (5/93). The mean age of the study participants was 30.62 ± 5.03 years. The highest prevalence was recorded among the age group 26–35 (6.3%; 4/64) years while the least was recorded among the age group 20–25 (6.7%; 1/15) years. None of the socio-demographic characteristics and potential risk factor considered had statistically significant association with HPV infection (P ˃ 0.05). Conclusion: Awareness and screening of pregnant women should be strengthened among health stakeholders for proper management.