title: The postpartum Papanicolaou smear.
abstract: This study was performed to evaluate the importance of obtaining postpartum Papanicolaou (Pap) smears routinely. Four hundred eighty-nine patients receiving pregnancy care had a normal prenatal Pap smear and a repeat Pap smear at their postpartum visit. Twenty-four (4.9 percent) had an abnormal postpartum Pap smear (95 percent confidence interval: 3.1-6.9 percent). Twenty-one (87.5 percent) of the abnormal smears showed squamous dysplasia; three (12.5 percent) showed squamous atypia. No specific risk factors were identified that predicted the occurrence of an abnormal postpartum Pap following a normal prenatal Pap except for age. Women more than 30 years of age were less likely to have an abnormal postpartum Pap smear (P = 0.008). The results of this study support the practice of performing Pap smears during prenatal care and again at postpartum examination, even when the prenatal Pap smear is normal.
authors.affiliation: Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of Arizona College of Medicine, Tucson 85719.
authors.forename: B D
authors.initials: BD
authors.lastname: Weiss
authors.forename: J H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Senf
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Udall
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008403:Mass Screening; D065006:Papanicolaou Test; D027383:Papillomaviridae; D049590:Postpartum Period; D011247:Pregnancy; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D014412:Tumor Virus Infections / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D002578:Uterine Cervical Dysplasia / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D002583:Uterine Cervical Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D014626:Vaginal Smears