[Human papillomavirus: what do young people really know about it?].

It has been five years since the introduction of the HPV vaccination campagnes in Switzerland. Although a majority of young people age 16 to 20 have heard about the HPV, many false beliefs regarding this virus and its effects persist, and a lot of young people feel insufficiently informed about it. The surveyed population is conscious that the HPV is a sexually transmitted infection; however, more than 80% do not know that men can also be infected. Preventive information must be improved to target men too, in order that everybody understands that men, as well as women, are concerned by this infection. Medical consultations are the ideal setting to inform young people about the HPV.