Some teen girls misunderstand the effects of the HPV vaccine

 

In the past few years, the development of a vaccine to prevent the human papillomavirus (HPV) has been hailed as an important step toward improving the sexual health of young people It has also caused controversy as individuals debate whether it should be given to children as young as 11. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, strains of this virus can potentially cause cervical or oral cancer.

Recently, Health Day reported on a new problem that has surfaced regarding this vaccine. According to a recent study published in the Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, one in four teenage girls believes that the HPV shot lowers their chances of contracting other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs).

Researchers polled 339 girls who had received the HPV vaccine in order to gauge their perceived risk of contracting HPV and other STDs after they had gotten the shot. Study participants' average age was 17, and the scientists found that 24 percent of the girls mistakenly believed that they now had a lower chance of getting diseases such as syphilis and gonorrhea.

The news source spoke to H. Hunter Handsfield, M.D., a member of the board of directors for the American Social Health Association, who said that he was not surprised by the results. In fact, he said that, if anything, it's positive to find that only 24 percent of girls held this misconception.

"I think it's important to counsel [girls] about what the vaccine protects against," said lead researcher Tanya Kowalczyk Mullins, M.D., an assistant professor of pediatrics at the Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center and the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, quoted by the news source.

These findings underscore the need for more programs to educate young women about effective ways to prevent STDs, such as practicing abstinence or safer sex.