Psychological adjustment to human papillomavirus in university females

Abstract

The HPV (Human Papillomavirus) literature is in need of investigations beyond risk factors for transmission and viral physiology, and toward the emotional consequence of receiving a positive diagnosis. The present study assesses the psychological adjustment of HPV positive university women by comparing their stress levels, caused by stressors common to the university population, with those of their HPV negative counterparts. Engagement in high versus lower risk behaviors, as well as time since learning of the diagnosis, are additional factors examined for their impact on stress. 487 university women underwent cervicovaginal cell sampling for HPV DNA at baseline and at 6-month follow-up, and self-administered the HAPI (History of Acute Papillomavirus Infection) questionnaire, regarding characteristics of sexual behaviors, sexual partners, and general risk-taking behaviors, at baseline, 6-month, and 1 year follow-up. Stress levels were determined by the average of nine items on the annual questionnaire. It was hypothesized that HPV positive women would experience more stress than HPV negative women, and that of the HPV positive women, those who had engaged in lower risk behaviors would experience more stress than those in higher risk behaviors, due to locus of control issues. Findings do not suggest a difference in average stress levels between HPV positive and negative women, or that time or engagement in high versus low-risk behaviors are mediators of the stress and coping process. In comparing HPV positives and negatives on individual stress items, HPV negatives were more financially stressed than HPV positives (p {dollar}<{dollar}.000, alpha =.05). Women who were positive at baseline and at 6-month follow-up were compared to those who were positive at baseline and then converted to negative. Results indicated a trend for those who remained positive to be more stressed, but not to the point of significance. Furthermore, they had a greater number of lifetime sexual partners and number of partners in the 6 months prior to baseline than those who converted to negative, both which approached significance. This finding supports the idea that viral load may play a factor in the natural history of HPV infection. A larger sample size is indicated for clarification.