Poor Oral Health and Oral HPV Infections

Those with poor oral health may be more susceptible to develop oral human papilloma virus (HPV) infections, according to a study that is said to be the first to identify the association.

Around 40-80 per cent of throat cancers are caused by oral HPV. Whilst there are several factors that contribute to development oral HPV, researchers found out that amongst the 3,500 participants who rated themselves as having poor oral health, more than half (56%) have higher prevalence of oral HPV infection.

This result showed that “overall health was an independent risk factor for oral HPV infection, because this association did not change regardless of whether or not the participants smoked or had multiple sex partners”.

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