HPV vaccine highly effective, new study shows

[Jose Fly]

HPV Sharply Reduced in Teenage Girls Following Vaccine, Study Says

A vaccine introduced a decade ago to combat the sexually transmitted virus that causes cervical cancer has already reduced the virus’s prevalence in teenage girls by almost two-thirds, federal researchers said Monday.

Even for women in their early 20s, a group with lower vaccination rates, the most dangerous strains of human papillomavirus, or HPV, have still been reduced by more than a third.

“We’re seeing the impact of the vaccine as it marches down the line for age groups, and that’s incredibly exciting,” said Dr. Amy B. Middleman, the chief of adolescent medicine at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, who was not involved in the study. “A minority of females in this country have been immunized, but we’re seeing a public health impact that is quite expansive.”

And this part is interesting in how it shows our Puritan roots still haunt us...

And in some countries, the vaccine is either mandatory or at least offered at school, its cost covered by a national health care system, making administration more streamlined and comprehensive. Such measures helped Rwanda achieve a 93 percent immunization rate in girls. Australia, where the vaccine is offered free to schoolgirls, accomplished a 92 percent reduction in genital warts in women under 21, a study showed.

So Rwanda is doing better than us.....Rwanda! And why are we lagging behind?

But studies show that many primary care providers either do not recommend the vaccine to parents and patients or do so halfheartedly. Some doctors are reluctant to discuss the vaccine because the conversation may dance uncomfortably around sexual activity. They may want to use their limited appointment time for health topics that parents may be more willing to engage.

There's our Puritan roots...can't talk about sex because it makes us feel all funny.

 

[Nick M]

And this part is interesting in how it shows our Puritan roots still haunt us...

You have Puritan roots? I doubt that. I do. Our girls have their shots. You know not of what you speak. As usual.

 

[Jose Fly]

Individual cases don't negate larger trends. As explained in the article, the US lags far behind countries like Rwanda in HPV vaccine rates, and one of the primary reasons is because Americans tend to be uncomfortable talking about sex.