An intriguing new study finds a link between the human papillomavirus, or HPV, the common sexually transmitted infection is the cause of cervical cancer cervical most and an increased risk of heart attack and stroke in women.
Led by Dr. Kenichi Fujise the medical branch of the University of Texas at Galveston Texas, the study found that women who is controlled positive for any strain of HPV were 2.3 times more likely to have had a heart attack or a stroke than women which proved negative. The positive controlled women at high risk HPV strains, those known to cause cancer, had a higher risk of heart attack or stroke, 2.86 times higher than uninfected women.
The study includes 2 450 women, aged 20 to 59, who had attended the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey between 2003 and 2006. The participants were tested for the HPV — 44,6% tested positive for any strain of HPV and 23.2% tested positive for a strain to high risk - and reported their status as heart disease. In total, 1 141 women had HPV. Sixty years said they had had a heart attack or stroke, and 39 of these women against HPV.
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Researchers have focused on HPV in the hope of finding a clue of why some people develop heart disease, even if they are pas of cardiovascular risk factors traditional such as hypertension, obesity or a history of smoking - about 20% of patients with heart disease. HPV appeared to be a plausible candidate as the virus interferes with the function of a gene called p53. The inactivation of the tumor suppressor gene contributes to various cancers, but previous research has shown that p53 regulates also the atherosclerosis or hardening of the arteries; Disabling may also lead to inflammation and exacerbate the health of the artery.
Inactive HPV an another tumor suppressor gene called retinoblastoma protein, which regulates the growth of smooth muscle cells that line blood vessels, so interfering with its function could also affect blood flow and, therefore, risk of heart attack.
While the new findings are interesting, they show an association. They prove that HPV causes heart disease. It is possible, for example, that women with heart disease are prone to HPV infection, rather than vice versa, or that other underlying factors makes women vulnerable to both.
A study much more is required to make a link between HPV and cardiovascular risk can be definitively established. As the New York Times reported:
"We need to be careful," said Dr. [Lori] Mosca, Director of preventive cardiology at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center, who did not participate in the study]. "We have to go and make more stringent types of research that could answer the question more definitely".
She said that many researchers are investigating possible links between cancer, infections and diseases of the heart, but that so far no infections had been established to cause diseases of the arteries.
Work of Dr. Fujise, said, "has the possibility, if it pan, also inform the public about the potential benefits of vaccination for HPV. But she added that the results were too preliminary to be used as evidence for immunization.
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HPV is sexually more common transmissible infection in the United States, affecting at least half of all sexually active men and women at some point. In 50 years, 80% of sexually active women had HPV. Most people clear the infection on their own, but in a small minority of cases, the infection may persist and lead to cancer. The HPV vaccine, which protects against genital warts and cancer of the cervix, vulva, vagina, penis, anus and throat, is recommended for both boys and girls aged 11 and 12.
If further study confirms the association between HPV and heart disease, it could help to shed valuable light on why people without the usual cardiac risk factors have heart attack anyway. Each year, 510,000 women have heart attacks in the United States, according to the American Heart Association. If the HPV is confirmed to play a role in heart risk, MSNBC reported, Fujise calculates that 4 321 women could have heart attacks each year due to HPV than other risk factors and that 1,618 women die each year from heart attack HPV.
The study was published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
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Meredith Melnick is a journalist in time. Find him on Twitter at @ MeredithCM. You can also continue the discussion on the time Facebook page and Twitter time @.
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