The Effect of Vaginal Lubrication on Unsatisfactory Results of Cervical Smears

Pergialiotis, Vasilios; Vlachos, Dimitrios‐Efthymios; Rodolakis, Alexandros; Thomakos, Nikolaos; Christakis, Dimitrios; Vlachos, Georgios

doi:10.1097/lgt.0000000000000037

Cited by 9 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…In a recent research aimed at investigating the effects of a lubricated speculum on pain, Uygur et al have shown that a small amount of lubricant in the examination speculum would not interfere in the quality of cytology results. That study has also cited other authors, reporting that the use of water‐based lubricant did not alter the rates of unsatisfactory results. In contrast, other studies have shown higher rates of unsatisfactory samples, because of lubricant use during the examination .…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 71%

“…Other studies have also shown a decrease in pain when using a lubricated speculum without interfering with Pap smear quality. Such results encourages practitioners to use lubricant for the examination, without changing the sample results …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 91%

“…In other studies, a very small number of patients were diagnosed with these findings, increasing the difficulty to perform statistic comparisons because of the limited number of samples . In some studies, the pathologists found no differences between groups with and without lubricant, so they concluded that the lubricant did not affect the results of the cytological samples …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…In the current study, the presence of liquid vaseline was not observed in the analyzed slides. Excess of inflammatory cells, large amounts of blood or lack of cells in the slides were considered collection artifacts, considered as unsatisfactory samples in some studies, excluding the hypothesis that overlapping lubricant could alter the interpretation of results …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In a recent study by Hill et al in order to assess the use of lubricant for patient comfort during the specular examination, there was an average lower discomfort in the group with lubricated speculum, thus facilitating examination and increasing patient adherence. Hill's study also excluded women with some conditions that could affect the perception of pain, such as menopause, pregnancy, dyspareunia, vaginitis, vulvar lesions, or those who had never had vaginal intercourse . Other studies have also shown a decrease in pain when using a lubricated speculum without interfering with Pap smear quality.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 4 more Smart Citations

Effects of using lubricant during the speculum examination for Pap smear collection

Nunes

Cascaes

Schneider

et al. 2018

Diagnostic Cytopathology

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Objective To evaluate the effect of using lubricant during speculum examination for Pap smear collection. Methods A cross‐sectional study was conducted involving 83 patients attending a medical school clinic. Participants were allocated into two groups: Group 1—Lubricant using; Group 2—No lubricant using. All patients were submitted to two successive collections and after were asked about their level of discomfort. Differences between groups regarding quality, artifacts, cytology, and level of discomfort were observed through chi‐squared test. Odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals were also estimated. Statistical significance was set at P < .05. Results No significant differences between groups regarding quality, presence of artifacts, and cytological results were observed. Significant lower discomfort level in Group 1 (lubricant using). Conclusion The use of vaginal lubricant did not affect the results of cytology and could be a useful tool to reduce the discomfort during Pap smear collection.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 71%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 91%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Effects of using lubricant during the speculum examination for Pap smear collection

Nunes

Cascaes

Schneider

et al. 2018

Diagnostic Cytopathology

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The effect of carbomer versus noncarbomer lubricant on the adequacy of cervical cytology specimens

Lander,

Feldman,

Perlman

et al. 2024

Journal of the American Society of Cytopathology

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Effect of Lubricant Use on Cervicovaginal Cytology – What's the Evidence?

Santos,

Matos,

Sousa

et al. 2023

Rev Bras Ginecol Obstet

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Objective To determine if the use of lubricating gel on the speculum during the cervicovaginal cytology examination interferes with the results obtained, as well as whether it reduces reported discomfort in patients. Data sources A systematic review was carried out according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) recommendations, with a search in the Pubmed/Medline, Scielo, Cochrane Library, Embase databases of articles published between January 2011 and May 2022. The keywords used were cytology, speculum, lubricant, result, and pain. Selection of studies The initial search resulted in 306 articles, of which were excluded three because they were duplicates, 257 after reading the title and abstract and 41 after reading the full text. Thus, five articles were selected for the study: four randomized clinical trials and one metanalysis. Data collection The selection of articles was performed by two investigators. The 5 selected articles were read in full and submitted to a comparative analysis. Data synthesis Screening through cervicovaginal cytology allows for early diagnosis and reduction of associated mortality, but the procedure can be associated with pain. A small amount of aqueous lubricating gel in the speculum can be used to reduce the discomfort associated with performing cervicovaginal cytology. Conclusion The use of lubricating gel in the speculum does not seem to be associated with a change in the cytology result and reduces the discomfort associated with its insertion into the vagina.

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The Effect of Vaginal Lubrication on Unsatisfactory Results of Cervical Smears

Abstract: It seems that speculum lubrication does not interfere with the rates of unsatisfactory results when examination is based on conventional cytology. Conversely, however, the limited number of studies evaluating speculum lubrication on liquid-based cytology precludes firm conclusions.

Cited by 9 publications

References 15 publications

Effects of using lubricant during the speculum examination for Pap smear collection

Effects of using lubricant during the speculum examination for Pap smear collection

The effect of carbomer versus noncarbomer lubricant on the adequacy of cervical cytology specimens

Effect of Lubricant Use on Cervicovaginal Cytology – What's the Evidence?

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