Pap Smear Screening in a Health Maintenance Organization: 1986–1990

Background.To assess Pap smear utilization and compliance with screening recommendations, a study was conducted in a large midwestern HMO where cost is not a barrier to care. The purpose of the study was to examine rates of screening by age, identify the proportion of abnormal cytologic findings, an...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Preventive medicine 1996-03, Vol.25 (2), p.156-161
Main Authors: Rolnick, Sharon, LaFerla, John J., Wehrle, Diane, Trygstad, Eric, Okagaki, Takashi
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
Adult
Age Distribution
Aged
cervical cancer screening
Female
Health Maintenance Organizations
Health Services Research
Humans
Incidence
Mass Screening - utilization
Middle Aged
Minnesota
Pap smear screening
Papanicolaou Test
screening within an HMO
Urban Health
Uterine Cervical Neoplasms - pathology
Uterine Cervical Neoplasms - prevention & control
Vaginal Smears - utilization
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Summary:Background.To assess Pap smear utilization and compliance with screening recommendations, a study was conducted in a large midwestern HMO where cost is not a barrier to care. The purpose of the study was to examine rates of screening by age, identify the proportion of abnormal cytologic findings, and determine screening incidence for women with a diagnosis of cervical cancer.Method.Computerized records on screening frequency over a 5-year interval were examined for 23,649 consecutively enrolled women ages 18–70. In addition, medical records were examined for patients with a cervical cancer diagnosis (n= 32).Results.Eighty-five percent of the women had at least one Pap smear within the 5-year duration. Nearly half (47%) obtained four to five tests, 30% obtained two or three tests, and 14% were screened only once during the 5 years. Percentages were similar across all age groups. Cytopathology reports indicated 95% of tests as normal, 4% as low-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (SIL),
ISSN:0091-7435
1096-0260
DOI:10.1006/pmed.1996.0041