Association of Bacterial Vaginosis and Human Papilloma Virus Infection With Cervical Squamous Intraepithelial Lesions

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: Human papillomavirus (HPV) is known to be associated with squamous intraepithelial lesions (SILs). However, there is limited and conflicting literature on the relationship between bacterial vaginosis (BV) and SIL. The aim of this study is to determine the prevalence of BV and evaluate the association between BV and SIL. METHODS: A retrospective study was performed on 10,546 cases between 2012 and 2017. HPV results were available in 7,081 cases. RESULTS: BV was present in 17.6% of cases. There was significant association between BV, positive HPV infection, and high-grade SIL. BV patients with negative HPV infection showed more squamous abnormalities than BV-negative HPV-negative patients. CONCLUSIONS: We found there is a significant association between BV and SIL. BV is more common among patients with HPV infection and is independently associated with squamous abnormalities in cervical smears and surgical follow-up.