Few teen girls know what a Pap smear is

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Only 2 out of 111 teen girls surveyed could successfully define a Pap smear and distinguish it from other gynecological exams, according to a new report.

Pap smears are performed as part of pelvic exams to test for early signs of cervical cancer. But pelvic exams are also necessary for detecting sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and other gynecologic problems.

However, more than two-thirds of the young women surveyed said they thought a Pap smear was the same thing as a pelvic exam.]

Women who confuse these exams may be setting themselves up for trouble, the authors suggest. For instance, patients may ask for one test when they really want another, and believe they have had tests—such as screening for STDs—when they have not.

To investigate how well teen girls understand gynecological exams, Diane R. Blake at the University of Massachusetts Medical School and her colleagues asked 111 female visitors to an adolescent clinic to complete a survey. Mothers who accompanied patients completed surveys, as well.

As part of the survey, respondents provided a written definition of a Pap smear, and checked which exams are equivalent to a Pap.

The researchers were looking to see whether respondents knew that a Pap smear is the same as a cervical cancer test, but not the same as a pelvic exam, pregnancy test or STD test.

They found that only three young women understood these distinctions.

However, among those three teens who correctly defined a Pap smear, only two completed the rest correctly. The other teen said a Pap can also mean a pelvic exam and STD screen.

Also, only 40 percent of mothers knew what a Pap test was. And teens whose mothers accompanied them to the clinic were more likely to have little or no understanding of the Pap test, Blake and her team write in the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.

More teens who had had intercourse said they believed a Pap was equivalent to a pelvic exam or test for STDs than teens who were not yet sexually active, the authors note.

Recently, the American Cancer Society recommended that young women do not need to have a Pap smear until a few years after they’ve become sexually active. These results suggest that the new guidelines may inadvertently cause young women to delay getting a pelvic exam, the authors note.

They recommend increasing education about the meaning of Pap smear to ensure that sexually active young women do not mistakenly delay recommended gynecologic care and STD screening.

SOURCE: Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, October 2004.

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