Impact of human papillomavirus vaccination on racial/ethnic disparities in vaccine-type human papillomavirus prevalence among 14–26 year old females in the U.S

•Lower vaccination in black females contributed to disparities in vaccine-type HPV.•Much of the national decrease in vaccine-type HPV occurred mainly among white women.•HPV vaccination resulted in the observed national decrease in vaccine-type HPV. Low human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination rates early after introduction, particularly among low income and minority adolescents, may have resulted in disparities in vaccine-type HPV prevalence (types 6, 11, 16, 18). The purpose of this study was to examine racial/ethnic variations in HPV prevalence, and evaluate how HPV vaccination has affected vaccine-type HPV prevalence across time. This study was a retrospective analysis of 6 cycles of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) data (2003–2014). Results on HPV status from vaginal samples of 14–26 year old females who responded about HPV vaccination were used to determine HPV prevalence. Prevaccine HPV prevalence was compared to post-licensure prevalence. Racial/ethnic comparisons were made across time, and models were developed to examine the role of HPV vaccination in observed variations for vaccine-type HPV prevalence. Among 4080 females, 29.7% were black, 25.6% were Mexican American, 8.9% were Hispanic, and 35.8% were white. Compared to prevaccine years (2003–2006), vaccine-type HPV did not decrease until late post-licensure years (2011–2014; 14.2% vs. 5.2%, p