Condom Use Reduces HPV Risk for Women

A new study published in the New England Journal of Medicine has demonstrated that condom use does indeed reduce the risk of the human papillomavirus (HPV) in "newly sexually active women".

The study followed 82 undergraduate women for an average of 34 months, where the women received pelvic exams, pap tests, and HPV tests every four months, and were asked to keep an journal of their sexual behaviors.

Women in the study either had their first sexual experience during the study period, or within two weeks prior to the study commencing.

As reported in the Miami Hearld, the findings included:

• When condoms were used consistently during every instance of vaginal intercourse, women were 70% less likely to contract HPV than women whose partners used condoms less than 5% of the time
• When condoms were used more than 50% of the time, women were 50% less likely to contract HPV
• None of the women who reported using condoms every time they had vaginal intercourse contracted HPV during the study period, but 14 women who did not use condoms every time, developed lesions indicating HPV during the study.

Read more - Kaisernetwork.org: Condom Use Reduces Young Women's Risk of Contracting HPV, Study Says

Previously - HPV vaccine Gardasil receives FDA approval; Gates Foundation to Fund HPV Vaccine Intiative ; Second HPV Vaccine Continues to Show Promise