Human papillomavirus prevalence at the USA-Mexico border among women 40 years of age and older

The incidence of cervical cancer increases with age among USA Hispanics and women living in Latin America starting in the fourth decade of life. We conducted a study of women > or = 40 living at the USA-Mexico border to determine the prevalence and risk factors for human papillomavirus (HPV) infection detected by polymerase chain reaction. In all, 9.2% of participants tested HPV positive. Compared with women aged 50-59, odds ratios of 8.82 and 6.67 were observed for women > or = 60 and 40-49, respectively. Among women aged 40-49, both oncogenic and non-oncogenic HPV infections were detected; however, women > or = 60 were positive for predominantly oncogenic genotypes. HPV risk significantly increased with > or = 2 lifetime sexual partners in adjusted models. These data suggest that the prevalence of HPV infection may have a second peak among post-menopausal Hispanic women.