PREVALENCE OF ABNORMAL CERVICAL CYTOLOGY AMONG POST- NATAL CLINIC ATTENDEES IN THE UNIVERSITY OF CALABAR TEACHING HOSPITAL, CALABAR

Abstract

Carcinoma of the uterine cervix is a deadly but preventable disease. Cervical cytology remains the key to its early detection and prompt treatment. About three percent of postnatal clinic attendees in the UCTH had low grade squamous intraepithelial lesion.

OBJECTIVES: 1. To determine the prevalence of abnormal cervical smear among postnatal clinic attendees in the UCTH. 2. To determine the sociodemographic characteristics of the women who had the postpartum cervical smear.

STUDY DESIGN, SETTING AND SUBJECTS: This was a prospective crosssectional study in the postnatal clinic of the UCTH. The clients were duely counselled and informed of the procedure and a signed consent obtained. The procedure was free.

METHODOLOGY: Aye’s spatula and endocervical brush were used to collect specimen from the ectocervix and endocervix respectively. The samples were treated using the conventional Papanicolaou staining method and reported using the Bethesda system. Questionnaire generated data as well as results of cytology were analyzed using the Epi-info version 3.5.1.0

RESULTS: There were 100 women screened. Three percent had low grade squamous intraepithelial lesion. Colposcopy done, however, did not reveal abnormal findings. 95% of the patients had no prior knowledge of cervical cancer.

CONCLUSION: Cervical cancer is a burden especially in our subregion, but it is largely preventable by doing regular cervical cytology to identify the preinvasive lesion at which stage prompt intervention is lifesaving. Effective screening programmes are the mainstay of the war against cervical cancer. Vaccination against Human Papilloma Virus(HPV), and HPV-DNA typing are encouraging but still expensive. Training of personnel and provision of facilities for such therapeutic interventions as cone biopsy, cryotherapy, LEEP, and hysterectomy in all tertiary and secondary hospitals is a timely way of preventing the late stage invasive lesion where little or nothing can be done for the patients.

PREVALENCE OF ABNORMAL CERVICAL CYTOLOGY AMONG POST- NATAL CLINIC ATTENDEES IN THE UNIVERSITY OF CALABAR TEACHING HOSPITAL, CALABAR