The Efficacy of Cervicography in Cervical Cancer Screening

Song, Keun Il; Noh, Heung Tae

Abstract

Cervicography is an adjunct method of cervical cancer screenign intended to complement papanicolaou smear. Cervicography involves obtaing and evalutionag a photographic image of the cervix.the purpose of this investigation was to evalute the efficacy of cervicography in cervicla cancer screening. Papanicolaou smear and cervigram data were obtainde for 169 patients who visited Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Chungnam Nationa University Hospital form September 1995 to march 1996. Those women in whom abnormalities were detected by either test subsequently obtained histologic specimen.the resunt wre as follows:1. the sensitivity and the specificity of cervicography was 78.8% and 86.3% respcetively. 2. the positive predictive value, negative predictive value, false negative rate, and false positive rate of cervicography were 71.9%, 90.15%, 13.7%, 21,2% respectively. 3. The sensitivity and the specifictiy of Papanicolaou smear was 84.6% and 92.3% respectivesly. 4. the positivie predictive value, negative predictive value, false negative rate, and false positive rate of Papanicoloau smear were 83.0%, 93.1%, 7.7%, 15.4% respecitively. 5. There was no significant difference between the sensitiviey and the specificity of cervicography and Papanicolaou smear (p=0.449, p=0.139) 6. When cervicography and Papanicolaou smear were used donjointly, the sensitivity was higher than for cervicography or Papanicolaou smear used alone (96.1% vs 78.8% p= 0.008, 96.1% vs 86.3%. p=0.047) However the specificity of the combined tests was lower than Papanicicolaou smear(80.3% vs 92.3% p=0.008). Cervicography is a useful method to detect cevical cancer. Howerver when cervigrams are used in conjuction with Papanicolaou smear, the detection rate of cervical cancer will be increased.