Modelling the impact of screening and prophylactic vaccination against human papillomavirus infection

In this study, a basic HPV model that we extend to incorporate screening and prophylactic vaccination is formulated and analysed to assess the impact of these interventions against HPV infection. The threshold parameter that governs the disease transmission is computed by the next generation operator approach. The model is analysed for the existence of disease free equilibrium and endemic equilibrium points. The results show that, the disease free equilibrium point is asymptotically stable when an effective reproduction number is less than unity and unstable when the effective reproduction number is greater than unity. Furthermore, sensitivity analysis on the key parameters is performed to determine their relative importance in reducing HPV transmission. The sensitivity interpretation shows that, the increase of the rates of vaccination and screening leads to the decrease of the effective reproduction number, implying that the disease cannot grow in the population. Additionally, numerical simulation results show that, HPV infection can be reduced when both interventions, screening and vaccination are implemented.