ABSTRACT

Although the strong evidence of the prevalence of condylomata in the HIV-positive population, literature on HIV prevalence and regulation of HIV screening in HIV-unscreened population which is diagnosed with condylomata is unconclusive. Our aim is to review literature about HIV screening and diagnosis of anal condylomata in order to evaluate medical aspects, ethical and legal issues concerning the management of this disease. We undertook an online search on Pubmed for the keywords “HIV”, “screening” and “anal condylomata” and 21 papers were analysed, 2 being randomized controlled trial, 9 comparative studies and 10 reviews. A total of 1211 patients were reviewed. All authors strongly recommend HIV testing in patients with clinical evidence of anal condylomata. In undeveloped countries with high prevalence of HIV, a proctological evaluation could be a good opportunity to have a “targeted” screening in a high risk population. In conclusion, two HPV vaccines now available could represent an unexpected therapeutic option for HIV infected male patients to prevent anal cancer. Clinical trials and prospective studies are necessary to validate this interesting hypothesis.