ThinPrep versus conventional Papanicolaou smear in the cytologic follow-up of XXXX with equivocal cervical smears.

@entity1 @entity2784 @entity189 @entity2786
BACKGROUND: The purpose of the current study was to compare the efficacy of liquid-based cytology and conventional smears in the cytologic follow-up of cases with "atypical squamous cells, cannot exclude a high-grade lesion" (ASC-H) or "atypical glandular cells" (AGC). METHODS: Cytologic follow-up was performed on 214 cases with ASC-H/AGC diagnosis an conventional smears using either ThinPrep (n = 100) or conventional Papanicoloau ( @entity2786 ) tests (n = 114). Results were then compared with further histologic and/or cytologic follow-up. RESULTS: Repetition on conventional smears enabled a definite diagnosis (within normal limits [WNL], @entity2784 [ @entity2784 ] or @entity189 ) in 58 cases (50.9%). ASC/AGC was confirmed in 50 cases (43.9%), and 6 of the smears (5.3%) were inadequate. WNL, @entity2784 , or @entity189 was diagnosed in 82 (82.0%) cases by following the @entity1 with ThinPrep cytology, whereas ASC or AGC was confirmed in 18 cases (18.0%). No inadequate specimens were found. A diagnosis of @entity2784 or greater ( @entity2784 +) was confirmed histologically in 11 of 11 (100.0%) conventional smears and in 31 of 34 (91.2%) ThinPrep specimens. Of the 87 WNL specimens, 9 (8 conventional smears and 1 ThinPrep specimen) developed a histologically confirmed @entity2784 during further follow-up. Specimen adequacy was significantly better in the ThinPrep specimens compared with conventional smears. CONCLUSIONS: Because of better specimen adequacy, ThinPrep cervical cytology appears to significantly reduce the occurrence of ASC/AGC compared with conventional Pap smears.
