Study of cervical cytology in infertile women eligible for in-vitro fertilization

Abstract

Objective The aim of this study was to compare the frequency of cervical cytological abnormalities in women with infertility problems with that in fertile women of the same age group. Participants and methods Fifty women were recruited for this study from the clinics of Kasr Al-Aini Hospital, Faculty of Medicine, Cairo University, between January 2011 and July 2012: 25 women from the infertility clinic who were eligible for in-vitro fertilization (study group) and 25 women from the contraception clinic. All women were subjected to a cervical smear. Colposcopic examination was performed for all women with an abnormal Pap smear. Punch biopsies were also performed whenever indicated. Results Around a quarter of the women in the study group showed abnormal cervical cytological changes (6/25: 24%), whereas only one woman in the control group showed abnormal changes; this difference was found to be statistically significant (P=0.039).The cervical cytological abnormalities encountered were low grade squamous intraepithelial lesion and atypical squamous cells of undetermined significance. High grade squamous intraepithelial lesion was not reported in any woman. Low grade squamous intraepithelial lesion was found only in the study group (four women: three with tubal infertility and one with ovulatory infertility). Atypical squamous cells of undetermined significance was found in two women in the study group (one woman with tubal infertility and another with unexplained infertility) compared with only one woman in the control group. Conclusion Because of the small number of participants included in the study, we could not reach a definitive conclusion. However, we observed that infertile women, especially those with tubal factor infertility, may benefit from cervical cytological screening as they show a higher tendency for cervical cytological abnormalities.