LOW PREVALENCE OF HIGH-RISK ANAL HPV IN YOUNG GAY AND BISEXUAL MALES AFTER THE UNIVERSAL HPV VACCINATION PROGRAM IN AUSTRALIA

Abstract

Australia introduced a school-based quadrivalent human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination program for females in 2007. This was extended to include boys aged 12–13 from 2013, with a two-year catch-up for boys aged ≤15. This study examined HPV prevalence among young gay and bisexual males (GBM) who were age-eligible for vaccination in the school-based program. Males aged 16–20 years were recruited from sexual health clinics and the community in Melbourne in 2017–2018, if they reported any form of male sexual contact, and were residents of Australia from 2013. A clinician-collected anal swab, self-collected penile swab and oral rinse were collected and analysed for detection and 37 HPV genotypes..