Human papillomavirus prevalence in oral potentially malignant disorders: Systematic review and meta‐analysis

Objectives We aimed to provide pooled estimates of human papillomavirus (HPV) prevalence in oral potentially malignant disorders (OPMD) and evaluate the impact of presence of epithelial dysplasia. Methods We searched PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library databases for studies that examined the prevalence of HPV DNA in OPMD tested by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Results Across 52 eligible studies (2,677 cases), we found an overall pooled HPV prevalence of 22.5% (95% confidence interval [CI] 16.6–29.0). Between‐study heterogeneity was 93%. When stratified by subgroup, the pooled HPV prevalence in leukoplakia (1,232 cases) was 20.2% (95% CI 11.2–31.1), lichen planus (767 cases) 23.0% (95% CI 15.0–32.2), oral submucous fibrosis (238 cases) 28.6% (95% CI 23.0–34.5), proliferative verrucous leukoplakia (60 cases) 24.7% (95% CI 1.8–62.0), and OPMD unspecified (377 cases) 25.4% (95% CI 16.2–35.8). Information on presence of epithelial dysplasia was available in 19 studies, and the results did not vary substantially between non‐dysplastic and dysplastic samples. HPV16 was the predominant genotype among HPV‐positive OPMD cases (48.2%, 95% CI 31.4–65.2). Conclusion We found a pooled HPV DNA prevalence of 22.5% in OPMD cases with great between‐study heterogeneity. The HPV prevalence appeared to be comparable across subgroups and independent of epithelial dysplasia.