Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #107624

Katy Duncan Smith, MS¹, Robert M. Hamm, PhD¹, Crystal D. Turner, MPH¹, Sharon S. Hsieh, MA¹, Danuta Kasprzyk, PhD², Laura A. Koutsky, PhD³, and Donna H. McCree, PhD, MPH, RPh⁴. (1) Department of Family and Preventive Medicine, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, 900 NE 10th Street, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, (2) Battelle Memorial Institute, Center for Public Health Research and Evaluation, 4500 Sand Poin Way NE, PO Box 5395, Seattle, WA 98105, (3) HPV Research Group, University of Washington, Box 359933 Lake Union Place, Suite 300, 1914 N 34th Street, Seattle, WA 98103, (4) Division of STD Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Behavioral Interventions and Research Branch, 1600 Clifton Rd Mailstop E-44, Atlanta, GA 30333, 404-498-3422, zyr1@cdc.gov

Objective: To examine HPV knowledge and vaccine acceptability in women tested for HPV post ASC-US Pap. Methods: One-hundred-eighty-one women who had abnormal Pap results and were tested for HR-HPV (Hybrid Capture II) within the last twelve months completed computer-assisted interviews addressing demographics, HPV knowledge, and HPV vaccine acceptability and barriers. From 19 HPV knowledge questions, a knowledge score was produced. Multiple linear regression analysis and ANOVA were used to predict women's vaccine acceptability. Results: About 57% (n=103) of participants tested positive for HR-HPV. Only 5.5% of the women had heard of an HPV vaccine. 75% reported it “very likely” they would be vaccinated if there were a safe vaccine for HPV; 72% would want their adolescent daughter or son to be vaccinated. HR-HPV positive women were more often 'very likely' to get vaccinated than women who tested negative (OR=3.2, 95% CI 1.6-6.5). Women very likely to be vaccinated had higher HPV knowledge (t=2.7, df=179, p=0.007). Unmarried women were more often 'very likely' to get vaccinated than married women (Chi-square=4.8, df=1, p=0.028). Women identified cost and lack of belief in vaccine effectiveness as barriers. African American women reported barriers were “very important” more than women of other races [F(3, 177)=9.1, p<0.001]. Conclusions: Women with more accurate knowledge of HPV and its meaning for a person's health are more likely to want to be vaccinated for HPV. African American women may experience barriers to vaccination more than women of other races.

Learning Objectives: Learning Objectives

Participants will (
• discuss women’s knowledge of HPV; (
• understand willingness of women to be vaccinated for HPV; (
• recognize perceived barriers to HPV vaccines.

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.

Recorded presentation