Korean J Cytopathol.  2004 Nov;15(2):81-85.

Correlation Of Human Papillomavirus Infection and Postmenopausal Squamous Atypia in Cervical Cytology

• Chun YK
• Moon IG
• Hong SR
• Kim HS
• Choi JS
• Park JY
• Park JS
• Kim TJ
• Kim HS

Abstract

Postmenopausal squamous atypia (PSA) is a phenomenon characterized by cellular alterations mimicking condyloma in the uterine cervix of postmenopausal women. It is not associated with human papillomavirus (HPV) infection. The aim of this study is to correlate findings with HPV infection and the cytohistologic findings of PSA. Eighty-three smears from postmenopausal women, initially interpreted as ASCUS and low-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions(LSIL), were reviewed according to the criteria of PSA. Fifty-eight cases were subsequently reclassified as PSA. Forty cases categorized as PSA were available for HPV-DNA detection by a nested polymerase chain reaction. Eight of these 40 cases(20%) showed biopsy-proven LSIL lesions. The HPV-DNA was detected in 42.5%(17/40), compared to 25%(5/20) of control cases. The HPV-DNA detection rate of biopsy-proven LSIL was 62.5%(5/8). It has been concluded that cytologic differential diagnosis of PSA from LSIL is difficult due to because of poor histologic and viral correlation.

Keyword

HPV; Squamous atypia; Postmenopausal; Squamous intraepithelial lesion

MeSH Terms

Cervix Uteri
Diagnosis, Differential
Female
Humans*
Papillomavirus Infections*
Polymerase Chain Reaction