Association of platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio and lymphocyte with HPV infection in adult women: a cross-sectional analysis

Background Human papillomavirus (HPV) infection represents a major public health concern worldwide. Inflammatory indicators have been associated with various disease conditions. However, the associations of platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), platelet (PLT), and lymphocyte (LYM) with HPV infection remain unclear. This study aimed to investigate the relationships between PLR, PLT, LYM, and HPV infection.Methods This cross-sectional study used data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) from 2011 to 2016. PLR was calculated as PLT/LYM. Multivariable logistic regression was performed to evaluate the associations between PLR and HPV infection. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used to calculate the area under the curve (AUC). Restricted cubic spline (RCS) analysis was applied to assess the association between LYM and HPV infection, and subgroup analyses with interaction tests were conducted.Results Among 5,415 adult females included in this study, 2,301 had HPV infection, and 3,114 did not. When PLR was analysed as a continuous variable, multivariable logistic regression showed a significant inverse association with HPV infection (odds ratio [OR] = 0.99). After categorising PLR into quartiles, participants in the highest PLR quartile (Q4: 143.70–477.14) showed lower odds of HPV infection compared with those in the lowest quartile (Q1: 12.86–92.60). The AUC values were 0.53, 0.64, and 0.72 for models I, II, and III, respectively. No significant association was observed between PLT and HPV infection. In contrast, LYM showed a significant positive association with HPV infection, with RCS analysis indicating a linear relationship. Interaction analysis suggested that this association varied according to PIR.Conclusion Higher PLR was associated with lower odds of HPV infection, whereas higher LYM levels were associated with higher odds of HPV infection. These findings provide additional evidence regarding the associations between inflammatory indicators and HPV infection.