Genital warts in women - 12-year incidence rate trends in Novi Sad

Abstract

Introduction. Data on the incidence and age distribution of women with genital warts in Serbia are limited. The aim of this study was to determine the epidemiological characteristics of genital warts in the female population aged 15 - 69 years in Novi Sad. Material and Methods. A descriptive epidemiological study was conducted using the data of the Primary Health Care Center ?Novi Sad?. The study data refer to women examined by primary care gynecologists during a 12-year period (2010 - 2021). Results. During the observed period, 654 out of 240,494 examined women aged 15 - 69 years, i.e. 609 out of 164,578 women aged 15 - 49 years, had newly diagnosed genital warts. The cumulative overall incidence rate of genital warts in women aged 15 - 69 was 2.7/1,000 (95% confidence interval 2.64 - 2.77), while in women aged 15 - 49 it was 3.7/1,000 (95% confidence interval 3.61 - 3.79). The trend in genital warts incidence in both observed age groups was stable. The highest annual incidence rate of genital warts was registered among women aged 15 - 19 years, and it was statistically significantly (p < 0.0001) higher than in all the other age groups. The annual estimated number of women with newly diagnosed genital warts in Novi Sad was 547, of which 187 (34.2%) were women aged 15 - 19 years. Conclusion. Our results provide essential epidemiological data that may be used as the basis for future population studies, as well as for the evaluation of the effectiveness of the human papillomavirus vaccination campaign, after its wide implementation in the vulnerable population.