title: Digital assessment of the reproductive tract versus colposcopy for directing biopsies in women with abnormal Pap smears.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study aimed to compare digital camera assessment of the reproductive tract (DART) to colposcopy for the evaluation of abnormal Pap smears.
  
  
  METHODS
  Participants included 207 women with abnormal Pap smears. Colposcopy and DART were performed on each patient by separate examiners with the goal of lesion detection. Analysis was performed per patient and per biopsy.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Patients had an average of 2.9 biopsies. Forty-two patients and 81 biopsies were positive for cervical intraepithelial neoplasia 2+. Both DART and colposcopy detected 41 (97.6%) of 42 patients (95% CI = 85.9%-99.9%). Digital camera assessment of the reproductive tract detected 66/81 (81.4%; CI = 70.7%-88.9%) and colposcopy detected 69/81 (85.2%; CI = 73.2%-92.4%) of biopsies that were cervical intraepithelial neoplasia 2+.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Digital camera assessment of the reproductive tract detects high-grade lesions of the cervix with similar sensitivity to colposcopy. It holds great promise to expand cervical cancer precursor lesion detection in areas with limited resources.
authors.affiliation: New York University School of Medicine, Bellevue Hospital, New York City, NY 10016, USA. mlcremer@hotmail.com
authors.forename: Miriam L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Cremer
authors.forename: Ethel I
authors.initials: EI
authors.lastname: Peralta
authors.forename: Selma G
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Dheming
authors.forename: Maria E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Jimenez
authors.forename: Carol A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Davis-Dao
authors.forename: Todd A
authors.initials: TA
authors.lastname: Alonzo
authors.forename: Paul D
authors.initials: PD
authors.lastname: Blumenthal
authors.forename: Juan C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Felix
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000818:Animals; D001706:Biopsy; D003127:Colposcopy; D005260:Female; D005833:Genital Neoplasms, Female / Q000175:diagnosis*; D005836:Genitalia, Female / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods*; D008875:Middle Aged; D065006:Papanicolaou Test; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D014626:Vaginal Smears; D055815:Young Adult