Abnormal Pap Smear Test

Sexual contacts with multiple partners, unprotected sex, frequent change of partners, as well as the immune system weakness, are among the most important risk factors for an abnormal Pap smear test. Women should avoid these factors in order to decrease their chances for cervical abnormalities. The treatment of a disease is much more effective when it is detected at an early stage, so it is also important to regularly visit the doctor. Pap smear test provides a good opportunity to find cervical dysplasia and other cervical and vaginal diseases.

Abnormal Pap smear test is usually suggestive of abnormal changes in the cells of the cervix. But there also exist other reasons of abnormal results. An abnormal result of the Pap smear may be linked to an inflammation induced by bacteria such as candida, trichomonas, gonococcus; very often, the results of the test become normal after the treatment of these bacteria.

The severity of the detected abnormalities is a very important factor for determining the management of women with abnormal Pap smear test. In case of a mild cervical inflammation the doctor may recommend the patient to return for the repeated Pap smear in several months. Women with an abnormal Pap smear test may also be referred for colposcopy, biopsy or HPV DNA testing.

An abnormal Pap smear test may suggest the development of dysplastic lesions in the cervical tissue. Cervical dysplasia can be detected through with this test, however, for an accurate diagnosis of lesions it is often required to perform supplementary evaluation. That is why, in case Pap smear test is suggestive of dysplastic lesions, the doctors may refer the patient for a colposcopy.

An abnormal Pap smear test frequently occurs in women with genital HPV infection. HPV infection, one of the most frequent STI in the world, is responsible for the development of different kinds of warts and cervical dysplasia. Some types of HPV, like HPV 16 and 18, are shown to be the main risk factor for the cancerous lesions on the cervix. Due to this fact, women having an abnormal pap smear test require a close medical attention.