OBJECTIVE: to study the relationship of biobehavioral factors, such as age, menarche, number of gestations, and age of first sexual intercourse, with changes in Langerhans'cells in women with negative hybrid capture for HPV. METHODS: thirty women referred due to abnormal cervical cytology or premalignant cervical lesions were studied and underwent colposcopy, guided biopsy and histopathological exams. The Langerhans' cells were identified by immunohistochemical (S100+) exams. Langerhans' cells visualized in brown color were counted using the software Cytoviewer. The nonparametric Wilcoxon rank-sum test was employed for statistical analysis. RESULTS: the number of Langerhans' cells in women who had menarche after 13 years old presented statistically significant difference (173.34 cell/mm²) compared to the group whose menarche occurred before 13 (271.41 cell/mm²). The age at the first sexual intercourse was associated with the low number of Langerhans' cells, 127.15 cell/mm² and 250.14 cell/mm², respectively, for the beginning of the sexual activity up to 17 years old and after 17 (p=0.03). Previous cauterizations of the uterine cervix have been related to a lower number of Langerhans' cells in the epithelium, with the average 120.30 cell/mm² as compared to 236.06 cell/mm² for those women who never underwent that procedure (p=0.05). Other factors such as the patient's age and the number of gestations showed no statistically significant differences in the density of Langerhans' cells. CONCLUSIONS: the present study reports the association of biobehavioral factors with decrease in the number of Langerhans' cell.
Cervix; Langerhans' cells; Human papillomavirus; Sexual activity; Cervical cauterizations; Celular immunization
