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At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

United Kingdom colposcopy survey, British Society for Colposcopy and Cervical Pathology.

OBJECTIVE: To audit various aspects of colposcopy practice throughout the United Kingdom on behalf of BSCCP. DESIGN: A postal questionnaire was circulated to those responsible for colposcopy services in all districts in the United Kingdom in 1988, followed by a smaller survey of 40 clinics in 1990 to detect any trends. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Information was sought on colposcopy workload, referral criteria, treatment method and follow-up, waiting times, staffing and training. RESULTS: There was a 71% response to the national survey of 1988 practice which alone accounted for 80,000 new referrals for colposcopy. Cytological criteria for colposcopy referral were generally liberal. In 1988 laser ablation was the single most popular method, and waiting times for colposcopy varied, with 79% of patients being seen within 8 weeks of referral. Colposcopy clinics run by non-gynaecologists, mainly genito-urinary physicians, were reported by 32% of districts. Half the respondents did not have accurate statistics, only 17% being computerized, and dissatisfaction with clerical support was widespread. Resources are required to improve administration and data collection. The principal findings from the 1990 data subset were a 10% reduction for new patient referrals compared with 1988 and the use of diathermy loop excision by one-third as their preferred treatment. CONCLUSIONS: This audit of colposcopy has provided useful information as well as a means of monitoring trends in colposcopy activity in the future.

Colposcopy

Colposcopy practice and training in family practice residency programs.

BACKGROUND: The potential growth of colposcopy as a family medicine procedural skill is directly related to the training currently offered to family practice residents. To define whether these skills are being adequately offered to physicians who want to perform this procedure for their patients, a study was designed to investigate the current status of colposcopy practice and training in family practice residency programs. METHODS: A 16-item survey sent to 356 family practice residency directors in the United States included items concerning colposcopy practice, training, educational programs and strategies, colposcopy coordinator educational background, and colposcopic resource materials and equipment. RESULTS: Surveys were returned from 204 (57 percent) family practice residencies. Colposcopy was performed at 45 percent of the residencies that responded. Ninety-six percent of the respondents who did not perform colposcopy believed colposcopy is a procedure that should be performed by family physicians. Clinical teaching and supervision was the most common method of resident training (74 percent). Colposcopy training coordinators were usually family physicians (72 percent), primarily trained by gynecologists. Assistance with implementing a colposcopy training program was requested by 85 percent of those programs presently not performing colposcopy. CONCLUSIONS: This study indicates that there are opportunities for further development of colposcopy practice and training in family practice residencies.

Attitude of Health Personnel

Survey of colposcopy service provided by genito-urinary medicine in England and Wales.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the expansion of colposcopy services within genito-urinary medicine (GUM) in England and Wales since 1985. DESIGN: Data collected by postal and verbal communication from 189 genito-urinary medicine clinics in England and Wales in January 1990. SUBJECTS: Consultant and junior genito-urinary physicians practising colposcopy. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Number of clinics providing colposcopy service; indication for colposcopy, treatment facilities available, waiting lists and training opportunities, compared with that in 1985. RESULTS: Of the 189 genito-urinary medicine clinics contacted, 60 provided a colposcopy service and 55 of these returned completed questionnaires. There has been a 67% increase in the number of colposcopies in use and over 50% of clinics have the facilities to treat cervical pathology. Waiting lists were minimal for both examination and treatment. Both men and women are examined with the colposcope for a variety of indications. At present, 52% of career grade GUM physicians practise colposcopy compared to 24% in 1985 and 94% of senior registrars compared with 42% in 1985 were in training or trained in colposcopy.

Colposcopy

[Role of colposcopy in the diagnosis of human papillomavirus infection of the uterine cervix].

Among 6706 women screened by cytology, only 9 (0.13%) showed evidence of human papillomavirus infection (HPVI). In 133 women examined by colposcopy for abnormal cytology or/and suspected lesions on the cervix, 41 (30.8%) showed subclinical papillomavirus infection (SPI) while 17.4% and 5.3% showed HPVI by histopathology and cytology, respectively. The conformation rate between colposcopy and pathology was 69.6%. Sixty-nine specimens out of 133 colposcopy guided biopsies were assayed by HPV-DNA dot hybridization with 6B/11, 16, 18 probes to detect the presence of HPV-DNA in the cervical specimens. Thirty-nine (56.5%) gave a positive result. The colposcopic predictive value of positive result for HPVI was 76.7%. The difference between colposcopy (59%) and pathology (20.5%) is statistically significant (P less than 0.01). These results suggest that colposcopy is superior to cytology and histopathology for the detection of SPI in the cervix. In colposcopy HPV-DNA positive women, aceto-while-epithelium was most common (28.2%). As it is difficult to differentiate SPI from cervical intraepithelial neoplasia especially the Grade I lesion by colposcopy, discrimination criteria are proposed together with the chief colposcopic features of SPI.

Colposcopy

Family physicians' colposcopy practices.

BACKGROUND: The objectives of this study were to determine (1) the extent to which family physicians are performing colposcopy, (2) which colposcopic procedures are performed by these family physicians, (3) demographic characteristics of physicians who perform colposcopy, and (4) whether physicians who do not perform colposcopy plan to do so in the future. METHODS: A questionnaire was mailed to all 757 self-identified family practice physicians in Arizona. RESULTS: The return rate was 72 percent, and the response rate was 55.5 percent. Results indicated that 19.3 percent of respondents were trained to perform colposcopy, and 9.5 percent actually have performed it. For those performing colposcopy, the mean number of procedures performed during the previous 6 months was 25 (range 2-100). CONCLUSIONS: Certain barriers to performing colposcopy were identified: (1) lack of available training, (2) interspecialty "turf battles," (3) quality assurance, and (4) the cost of malpractice liability insurance. Nevertheless, there were no insurmountable reasons why family physicians could not perform colposcopy.

Arizona

Carcinoma-in-situ of the cerivix treated with colposcopy guided epithelial conization. Report of a 4-7 year follow-up study.

Twenty-five patients with the diagnosis of carcinoma-in-situ (CIS) of the cervix were treated with colposcopy guided epithelial conization. During the follow-up study of 4-7 years' duration, there was no recurrence of CIS in 20 of the 25 patients. Between 6 and 12 months after conization, 3 patients showed recurrence of CIS. Two of these patients were treated with further epithelial conization with no evidence of further recurrence 4 years after the second treatment. The third patient refused to accept further epithelial conization and modified radical hysterectomy was done without any evidence of residual tumour in the hysterectomy specimen. One patient showed stromal invasion in both colposcopically guided biopsy and bone biopsy. Modified radical hysterectomy specimen showed remnants of stromal invasion. One patient with Class IV smear failed to show any atypical transformation zone and cervicitis was proven on colposcopy guided biopsy following treatment with Flagyl. For two of the 25 patients, cytology was Class II and therefore failed to diagnose the pre-malignant condition; but colposcopy showed a grade 3 atypical transformation zone and the presence of CIS was confirmed histologically. Simultaneous use of cytology, colposcopy and colposcopically guided biopsy confirmed the diagnosis of CIS in all cases. The authors recommend colposcopically guided epithelial conization in younger patients, provided the malignant lesion is strictly intra-epithelial, and limited to the ectocervix. Routine follow-up with the aid of cyto-colposcopy remains the key factor in this schedule of therapy.

Adult

Role of endocervical curettage in colposcopy.

A series of 1,850 patients with atypical Papanicolaou smears referred to the Colposcopy Clinic at Cook County Hospital were evaluated. There were 2,000 colposcopic examinations with or without directed biopsy and 495 endocervical curettements. Records of 126 patients who had definitive diagnoses were reviewed. Of 126 patients, 41 had diagnostic conization following colposcopy-directed biopsy and endocervical curettage; 85 had only colposcopy-directed biopsy and endocervical curettage. There were two instances in which an invasive cancer was missed prior to therapy, one in the group of 41 patients (incidence of 2.4 per cent), the other in the group of 85 patients (incidence of 1.1 per cent). Cone biopsy contributed very little to establishing the diagnosis of invasive cancer following colposcopy-directed biopsy and endocervical curettage. Safety measures for endocervical curettage performed during pregnancy are presented. The management of patients evaluated by colposcopy-directed biopsy and endocervical curettement requires careful correlation of histo- and cytopathology.

Biopsy

Telephone counseling improves adherence to colposcopy among lower-income minority women.

PURPOSE: A randomized trial was conducted to evaluate the impact of a telephone counseling intervention to improve patient adherence to colposcopic examination for suspected cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN). METHODS: Subjects were lower-income, minority women who missed a scheduled initial appointment for colposcopy at an urban medical clinic. Patients were randomly assigned to either a control condition (n = 42) or a telephone counseling condition (n = 48). The 15-minute, structured telephone counseling intervention protocol addressed educational, psychosocial, and practical barriers to colposcopy adherence. RESULTS: The most common patient-reported barriers to colposcopy adherence included a lack of understanding of the purpose of colposcopy (50%), worry about or fear of cancer (25%), and forgetting (23%). Telephone counseling was found to be highly effective in addressing these barriers and improving adherence to diagnostic follow-up and treatment. Of patients in the control condition, 43% complied with a rescheduled colposcopy appointment, compared with 67% in the telephone counseling condition. Logistic regression analysis indicated that the effect of telephone counseling was independent of sociodemographic confounder variables (odds ratio = 2.6; P less than .003). Additionally, 74% of patients who received the initial telephone counseling adhered to recommended treatment, compared with 53% of patients in the control condition. CONCLUSION: Brief, structured telephone contact may be a cost-effective mechanism for improving adherence to diagnostic follow-up and treatment for a variety of cancer screening tests.

Adolescent

Colposcopy in a family practice residency. The first 200 cases.

BACKGROUND: The incidence of abnormal Papanicolaou smears has increased dramatically in the last decade. Many family physicians now find it necessary to perform colposcopies themselves to provide optimal care for their patients. There is little literature that evaluates the performance of this procedure by family physicians. METHODS: The findings of the first 200 colposcopies performed in a community hospital-based family practice residency program are reported. Descriptive data were prospectively gathered between August 1987 and December 1989. RESULTS: The median age of the patients was 25 years, the median number of sexual partners was three, and the median age at the time of first sexual intercourse was 17 years. The majority had colposcopy performed because of a class III Papanicolaou smear (108 [54%]). Twenty-five (12.5%) were pregnant at the time of colposcopy; for this reason a biopsy was not performed on 19 of the patients. An average of three distinct cervical lesions were seen in each patient. The most frequent histologic finding was some degree of dysplasia (116 of 181 biopsied [64%]). Twenty-two cases of severe dysplasia (carcinoma in situ) were found. However, no cases of invasive carcinoma were found. CONCLUSIONS: High-quality colposcopy and effective treatment with appropriate referral can be done at the primary care level for most patients. Many patients failed to return for follow-up evaluation after treatment, indicating the need for better tracking of patients.

Adolescent

Colposcopy screening for cervical cancer in a family planning program.

A brief history is presented of colposcopy in the United States and at Louisiana State University. Incorporation of colposcopy screening as a part of the cervical cancer screening program in the Louisiana Family Planning Program is discussed, and the reasons for the need of "in house" colposcopy service are outlined. Data of the Louisiana Family Planning Program Colposcopy Service for the three-year period 1972 through 1974 are presented. Analysis of these data reveals that cytology when used without colposcopy fails to reveal the presence of major cervical pathology in 30.2% of patients. It is concluded that colposcopic screening must be a part of all family planning and cervical cancer detection programs.

Colposcopy

Colposcopy.

The main clinical value of colposcopy in modern gynecology is in the clinical diagnosis of patients with abnormal cytology. In colposcopically directed biopsies it is possible for an experienced colposcopist to sample with a high degree of accuracy the most advanced histopathologic changes. This significantly decreases the frequency of diagnostic conization. Colposcopy can efficiently select patients for outpatient treatment of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia, since it precisely defines the size and localization of epithelial changes. A new application of colposcopy is in the evaluation of young girls who have been exposed to stilbestrol in utero. In these patients colposcopy can improve the diagnosis of changes in cervical-vaginal epithelium.

Adenocarcinoma

A comparison of simultaneous cervical cytology, HPV testing, and colposcopy.

This pilot study explores the screening techniques for premalignant and malignant disease of the cervix. Given current knowledge of the etiology and progression of cancer of the cervix, should family physicians screen patients with Papanicolaou (Pap) smears, Human Papillomavirus (HPV) smears, colposcopy, or some combination of these three? In a retrospective audit of 75 patients comparing simultaneous Pap smears and colposcopy, 5 of 8 patients with biopsy-proven cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) and one with invasive cancer had normal Pap smears. Because of this high false-negative Pap smear rate, a prospective study comparing a simultaneous Pap smear, HPV smear, and colposcopic examination (with biopsy when indicated) was undertaken. Seventy consecutive patients seen by the author for routine pelvic examinations consented to and were enrolled in the study. Seven patients had biopsy-proven CIN lesions; 2 were found by Pap smear, 3 by colposcopy, and 5 by HPV smear. The Pap smear missed 5 lesions, colposcopy missed 4, and the HPV smear missed 2. Further studies are needed to determine the optimal screening method for CIN.

Colposcopy

An evaluation of human papillomavirus testing as part of referral to colposcopy clinics.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the usefulness of human papillomavirus (HPV) testing as a triage method for predicting which women referred to a colposcopy clinic were most likely to have histologically confirmed cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN). METHODS: Papanicolaou tests, ViraPap tests for HPV infection, and colposcopically directed biopsies were performed concurrently on 482 women referred to a student health colposcopy clinic. RESULTS: The results demonstrated that HPV positivity was associated with a greatly increased likelihood of histologic confirmation of CIN, especially among women with concurrent cytologic findings that were negative or showed only atypical squamous cells of undetermined significance. CONCLUSIONS: Testing for HPV appears to have a role in the triage of students now being referred to our colposcopy clinic. A combination of HPV testing and repeated cytologic screening would provide reasonably sensitive screening for cervical neoplasia while limiting the use of colposcopic services, which are currently overburdened. The eventual usefulness of HPV testing will depend on the cost and availability of colposcopy services, the cost of Papanicolaou tests, the cost and accuracy of HPV tests, and the predictive value of HPV detection in the population being screened.

Adult

[The role of colposcopy in the diagnosis of HPV infection].

Human papillomavirus (HPV) has been implicated as an important etiologic factor in cervical carcinoma. This study evaluates the efficacy of colposcopy in the detection of cervical lesions with koilocytosis features. Colposcopy, cervical smears and biopsy specimens from 217 women seen in our department between January-December 1991 were examined. The colposcopy examination detected 77.5% of the viral presence the histological diagnosis detected 85% of HPV, but the cytologic smears showed only 52% of infection. The data suggests that colposcopy is a good examination to evidence koilocytosis infection.

Adult

Survey of colposcopy practices by obstetrician/gynecologists.

A statewide survey to characterize the colposcopy patterns of practicing obstetrician/gynecologists was undertaken. There was a 66.1% response rate, with 98.2% of respondents performing colposcopy. Of those performing colposcopy, nearly all perform biopsies, cryosurgery and conizations; 73.4% perform laser vaporization, 66.7% perform laser cone biopsy and 11% perform laser cone biopsies in their offices. The mean number of colposcopies performed by respondents in a six-month period was 55. Twenty percent performed less than one examination per week and an additional 60% performed two to three examinations per week. Further studies to assess the diagnostic accuracy of those performing greater and lesser numbers of examinations are needed.

Arizona

Clinical usefulness of computerized colposcopy: image analysis and conservative management of mild dysplasia.

OBJECTIVES: The purposes of this study were to evaluate the clinical usefulness of computerized colposcopy and image analysis, to investigate the correlation between lesion size and grade of dysplasia, and to examine and record the colposcopic changes associated with progression or regression of cervical dysplasia. METHODS: Sixty-eight patients with a fully visualized squamocolumnar junction and a histopathologic diagnosis of mild dysplasia were serially monitored for a period of 1 year using computerized colposcopy and image analysis. All patients had baseline computer-assisted measurements of their cervical lesions and repeat measurements at 3-month intervals. RESULTS: The mean age of the patients was 31 years, and the mean size of the colposcopically visualized lesions was 58 mm2. During the 12-month observation, 5.9% of the lesions increased in size, 32.4% decreased in size, 13.2% remained unchanged, 20.6% disappeared, and 27.9% completely changed location. In patients with an increase in lesion size (N = 4), a repeat biopsy was performed, revealing a progression to moderate dysplasia. Treatment was withheld from patients whose lesions disappeared (N = 14), decreased in size (N = 22), or remained unchanged (N = 9). Active therapy was unnecessary in 66% of cases and repeat biopsy was avoided in 94.1%. CONCLUSIONS: Computerized colposcopy provides objective information and may be an adjunct to cytology and histopathology in some cases. Computerized colposcopy replaces subjective colposcopic evaluation with objective computer assessment and may hold promise for conservative management of cervical dysplasia.

Adult

Experience with colposcopy in a family practice center.

The experience of a family practice center that performed colposcopy for one year was reviewed to provide insight into the appropriateness of this procedure to a family practice clinic. Almost three thousand Papanicolaou smears were performed, which prompted 97 colposcopy clinic appointments involving 68 patients. Dysplastic Pap smears accounted for 1.82% of the total. Atypical Pap smears occurred in 3.91% of the tests, and 16.1% of a sample of these demonstrated dysplasia. Controversy concerning the atypical Pap smear is discussed. The colposcopy service was convenient for the patients and was at least revenue neutral while providing a new professional opportunity for selected family practitioners. A referral base of at least 1,000 Pap smears might justify a colposcopy program, depending on referral strategies.

Ambulatory Care