Socioeconomic Position, Gender, and HPV Vaccine Utilization

Abstract

In 2011-2014, the prevalence of HPV was higher in adult males compared to adult females. HPV and its associated health outcomes can be prevented through the completion of the 3-dose HPV vaccine series. Using the 2010 - 2016 National Immunization Survey - Teen, I examined the association of family income and gender with three HPV vaccine utilization outcomes: (1) receipt of provider recommendation; (2) HPV vaccine initiation; and (3) HPV vaccine completion using logistic regressions. Results suggested that family income was negatively correlated with HPV vaccine outcomes regardless of gender and controlling for other covariates. I also found that males had lower vaccine use compared to females, regardless of income. In the second analysis I investigated if the 2011 ACIP guideline increased vaccine utilization outcomes using a difference-in-differences. This analysis suggested that the new guideline increased recommendations by 24 percentage points for males, relative to females (P<0.01), HPV vaccine initiation improved by 23 percentage points (P<0.01), and vaccine completion improved by 10 percentage points (P<0.01).