PAPNET-DIRECTED RESCREENING OF CERVICOVAGINAL SMEARS - A STUDY OF 101CASES OF ATYPICAL SQUAMOUS CELLS OF UNDETERMINED SIGNIFICANCE

Many women having cervicovaginal smears interpreted as atypical squamo us cells of undetermined significance (ASCUS) ultimately prove to harb or squamous intraepithelial lesions (SIL). The question is whether rar e cells diagnostic of SIL are present in so-called ''atypical'' smears , but simply go undetected. To test whether the PAPNET Cytological Scr eening System, an automated system, can detect the (assumed) presence of such cells, six reviewers independently evaluated PAPNET video imag es generated for 101 casts conventionally diagnosed as ASCUS. Using PA PNET-identified microscopic coordinates, selected cases were then manu ally reviewed and reclassified according to consensus opinion. Overall , 35 cases were reclassified as SIL (22 low grade; 13 high grade). His tologic correlations showed 37 of the 101 cases conventionally interpr eted as ASCUS carried tissue diagnoses of SIL (28 low grade; 8 high gr ade; 1 ungraded). Using PAPNET, 24 of the 37 (65%) corresponding smear s were reclassified as SIL (15 low grades; 9 high grade).