Abstract
INTRODUCTION: Cervical cancer is the most common cancer among Indian women. Only 5 % of women in developing countries have ever been screened for cervical abnormalities. OBJECTIVES: To study the correlation of cytology and colposcopy in VIA-positive women attending the Gynaecology clinic. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This prospective cross-sectional study on 200 symptomatic women compares the role of cytology and colposcopy in the assessment of subjects testing positive for acetowhite lesions on the cervix after application of 5 % acetic acid (VIA). RESULTS: 200/637 women screened in OPD tested VIA positive, giving a positivity rate of 31 %. Six smears were reported as LGSIL or HGSIL giving a cytological abnormality rate of 3 %. The association between cytology and Reid's score was statistically significant at a p value of 0.02. Of the 4 cases with biopsy-confirmed invasive cancer, cytology reported 2 as LGSIL and 2 as HGSIL. Colposcopy reported all these women as CIN 2/3. CONCLUSION: The accuracies of Pap smear cytology and colposcopy in the diagnosis of precancerous and cancerous lesions of cervix were good.