College women, HPV genotyping and sexual behavior before HPV vaccination: Results from samples stored for a long time

HPV is the sexually transmitted agent most common among young people, like college students. The aim of study was to associate sexual behavior characteristics of women with HPV, detected in genital samples taken before the introduction of the HPV vaccine. Female students during 2001–2005 donated genital samples and the samples were re-analyzed in 2013 for HPV genotyping by RT-PCR. The frozen storage of the students’ genital samples allowed the detection of HPV DNA and its genotyping after years of sample collection. HPV prevalence was 22%, HPV16 3.9%, and HPV18 1.1%. Age, multiple sexual partners and the partner’s age at first sexual intercourse were significantly associated to HPV. Students with ≥ 3 sexual partners and who did not use condom had 12.8 higher odds of being HPV positive. These results made possible the analysis of HPV prevalence changes, before HPV vaccine introduction. Keywords: HPV, Women, Sexual behaviors, Condom, Vaccinatio

Frequency and Correlation of Body Mass Index and Waist-Hip Ratio with Fasting Glycemia and Blood Pressure in High School Students from Mexico

Background: Overweight/obesity is a global public health problem in adolescents. Its frequency is increasing as similar to diabetes, hypertension, health expenses, and poor quality of life. Thus, detecting overweight/obesity early in life promises a positive impact on the world’s health. Methods: In a cross-sectional study, differences were explored between glycemia and blood pressure according to BMI, WHR, age, sex, number of daily meals and family history of chronic diseases in high school students from Mexico City. Results: The prevalence of overweight and obesity in the participants (115) was 26% and 7%, respectively. Fasting glycemia (mg/dL) was higher in students aged ?17 vs. ?18 (91.45±7.96 vs 87.59±10.06, p=0.038). All hyperglycemic students and with android adipose distribution were women. Compared to the other participants, overweight students had higher systolic (107.24±12.31 vs 115.73±15.28, p=0.003) and diastolic (70.99±10.93 vs 76.27±13.02, p=0.033) mean values (mmHg). Systolic values were higher in obesity (108.77±13.03 vs 118.63±18.38, p=0.048). Men had a higher frequency of systolic (32%, p=0.001) and diastolic (37%, p=0.023) prehypertension/hypertension than women (8% and 17%, respectively). Systolic prehypertension/hypertension was common in overweight (47% vs 53%, p=0.008). Skipping meals was common in students with family history of hypertension (13% vs 87%, p=0.005). Conclusion: The prevalence of overweight was higher and of obesity was lower than the one reported in ENSANUT 2016 (22.4% and 13.9%, respectively). Sex differences in blood glucose and pressure were obtained: men had higher blood pressures and women with abdominal fat had higher fasting glycemia. Systolic blood pressure was higher in overweight and obesity

Performance of ELISA and Western blot to detect antibodies against HSV-2 using dried blood spots

Background and aims: Herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) is a sexually transmitted agent and is detected worldwide. HSV-2 is the main cause of genital ulcers and is diagnosed mainly with serological tests. The objective of current study was to evaluate the use of DBS samples to detect HSV-2 antibodies using commercial ELISA and Western blot tests. Materials and methods: IgG-G2 ELISA (Human® Diagnostics, Germany) and Western blot IgG/IgM (EUROLINE-WB, Euroimmun® Germany) tests were modified to use DBS samples. Samples were processed by both methods to determine ELISA cutoff points using ROC curves. ELISA was performed with 100 μl and the Western blot with 200 μl of eluted DBS. A 1:5 dilution was used and the incubation times were increased for the Western blot. Results: 908 DBS samples were processed and the following cutoff points were determined: negative (0–3.79), undetermined (3.8–4.6) and positive (≥4.61), with sensitivity and specificity close to 95%. Conclusion: Modifications of the cutoff points of the ELISA test were obtained with technical adjustments done to detect HSV-2 antibodies by ELISA and Western blot using DBS samples. Keywords: Herpes simplex virus type 2, Dried blood spots, Western blot, ELIS