Reparative changes and the false-positive/false-negative Papanicolaou test: a study from the College of American Pathologists Interlaboratory Comparison Program in Cervicovaginal Cytology .
BACKGROUND
Reparative changes can be a diagnostic challenge on Papanicolaou tests and must be distinguished from epithelial cell abnormalities. Both squamous intraepithelial lesions (SIL) and carcinoma may be underdiagnosed as repair. This study examines laboratory and cytologist performance in the diagnosis of repair.


OBJECTIVE
To determine if laboratories and cytologists can consistently distinguish reparative changes from SIL and carcinoma and to document how often SIL and carcinoma are mistaken for repair in a standardized educational slide program.


METHODS
Results for reparative changes, SIL, and carcinoma slides from the College of American Pathologists Interlaboratory Comparison Program in Cervicovaginal Cytology for 1998 were analyzed. Only results from validated referenced slide responses were used.


RESULTS
The concordancy rate for reparative-change slides, that is, any response of within normal limits or benign cellular changes, ranged from 91% to 94% for cytotechnologist, pathologist, and laboratory responses. False-negative rates for squamous carcinoma and adenocarcinoma, high-grade SIL, and low-grade SIL ranged from 0.47% to 5.41%; the proportion of false-negative diagnoses of reparative changes ranged from 24% to 62% of all discordant responses.


CONCLUSIONS
Of all benign cellular changes and within normal limits categories in the Interlaboratory Comparison Program in Cervicovaginal Cytology, repair most often elicits a false-positive laboratory response. Underdiagnosing epithelial abnormalities as repair is also a source of false-negative Papanicolaou test results.
Colgan
T J
TJ
Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario.
Woodhouse
S L
SL
Styer
P E
PE
Kennedy
M
M
Davey
D D
DD
D002584:Cervix Uteri / Q000473:pathology; D005188:False Negative Reactions; D005189:False Positive Reactions; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D065006:Papanicolaou Test; D010336:Pathology; D012955:Societies, Medical; D014481:United States; D002583:Uterine Cervical Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000473:pathology; D014621:Vagina / Q000473:pathology; D014626:Vaginal Smears / Q000145:classification / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D014945:Wound Healing; D002578:Uterine Cervical Dysplasia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000473:pathology