Repeated Pap smear screening among Mexican-American women

The factors that influence repeated cervical cancer screening among Latina women are not well understood. Studies of compliance in this population over-emphasize initial or recent screening and under-emphasize how this practice is repeated over time. The purpose of this study was to identify the demographic and psychosocial factors associated with repeated Pap smear screening among low-income Mexican-American women living in two urban communities in Texas. A total of 1804 Mexican-American women were interviewed as part of a community survey. Multiple regression results indicate that demographic characteristics such as age, marital status, level of acculturation and health insurance were associated with the total number of Pap smears reported for the 5 years prior to the interview. Pap smear beliefs were the strongest predictor of repeated screening, while global beliefs about cancer did not significantly explain the results. Health promotion interventions should take into consideration the cultural and psychosocial needs of Mexican-American women, placing emphasis on their specific screening-related beliefs, if they are to succeed in promoting repeated compliance with Pap smear screening guidelines.     

Sociodemographic factors of Pap smear screening in Taiwan

Substantial evidence exists that regular screening is effective in preventing cervical cancer. However, the existing services are underused by many women in Taiwan. To examine the effects of sociodemographic characteristics on the underuse of Papanicolaou (Pap) smear screening, from September to December 1993 we conducted a questionnaire interview on a sample of 4,400 women aged 20 years and older in Taipei city using multistage sampling with probability proportional to size. Our results indicate that 40% of the women sampled have never had a Pap smear and 86% have not had one in the past year. Age is the strongest factor affecting Pap smear use, particularly for women below age 30 and over the age of 65. In addition, women with lower levels of education, women who are not employed, never-married women who live outside the city tend to underuse Pap smear screening. These findings help indicate priority groups which should be targeted to increase screening and consequently reduce cervical cancer. Our data also provides a good baseline for comparison of rates of Pap smear screening by various sociodemographic factors in the future.     

The Prentif cervical cap and Pap smear results: a critical appraisal

An analysis from a randomized study has suggested that a larger percentage of Class III Pap smears appears among Prentif cervical cap users three months after initiation of use of the method than among diaphragm users. This suggestion has been the basis of a U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requirement that women seeking to use the cap have Pap smears taken before initiating use and again after three months of use. The data from the pivotal randomized study are reanalyzed here. No significant differences exist in the distributions of smears between cap and diaphragm users at three months or throughout the first year. The majority of cap users with "Class III" smears at three months did not have even mild dysplasia when subsequently evaluated by biopsy or colposcopy. This was also the case for diaphragm users classified as having grade III smears at three months. Other studies of the Prentif cap have not found conversions to Class III smears at one year. The requirement of a 3-month Pap smear is not only economically burdensome to potential users of the cap but appears to be without firm foundation in the original data or in our current views of cervical carcinogenesis.     

液基细胞学与巴氏涂片对宫颈病变诊断价值的临床观察

目的探讨液基细胞学与巴氏涂片在宫颈病变中的诊断价值。方法将7600例进行宫颈细胞学检查的妇女随机分为两组：观察组（3800例）应用液基细胞学检查,对照组（3800例）应用巴氏涂片检查。结果观察组宫颈上皮内瘤变阳性率[17．26％（656／3800）]与组织病理学符合率[96．34％（632／656）]明显高于对照组[分别为12．24％（465／3800）、87．53％（407／465）],差异均有统计学意义（P〈0．01或〈0．05）,但滴虫检出率两组比较差异无统计学意义（P〉0．05）。结论对宫颈病变的筛查中,液基细胞学检查明显优于巴氏涂片,且方法简单、实用,临床应积极开展。     

液基细胞学与巴氏涂片对宫颈病变诊断价值的临床观察

目的 探讨液基细胞学与巴氏涂片在宫颈病变中的诊断价值.方法 将7600例进行宫颈细胞学检查的妇女随机分为两组:观察组(3800例)应用液基细胞学检查,对照组(3800例)应用巴氏涂片检查.结果 观察组宫颈上皮内瘤变阳性率[17.26%(656/3800)]与组织病理学符合率[96.34%(632/656)]明显高于对照组[分别为12.24%(465/3800)、87.53%(407/465)],差异均有统计学意义(P<0.01或<0.05),但滴虫检出率两组比较差异无统计学意义(P>0.05).结论 对宫颈病变的筛查中,液基细胞学检查明显优于巴氏涂片,且方法简单、实用,临床应积极开展.     

Pap smear use in a population of older Mexican-American women

BACKGROUND: Hispanic women and older women (age > or = 50 years) in general have been identified as populations of women who often underutilize Papanicolaou (Pap) smears. OBJECTIVE: To report the rates of cervical cancer screening in a group of older Mexican American women and to identify the correlates of having a Pap smear in the past three years. DATA SOURCE: The Mammography Use by Older Mexican-American Women Survey, a stratified area probability sample of 452 women ages 50-74 from three southeast Texas counties. Self-report data was collected with in-person interviews from 1997 to 1999. RESULTS: We found that 93.1% of the women reported at least one Pap smear in their lifetime and that 64.1% reported a Pap smear in the past three years. Odds of reporting a recent Pap smear was lower for older women (OR 0.51, 95% CI 0.32-0.82) and those below the poverty line (OR 0.52, 95% CI 0.33-0.82). The odds were higher for women who had a regular doctor for female care (OR 6.49, 95% CI 2.96-14.23) or a regular clinic or hospital source for female care (OR 5.50, 95% CI 2.55-11.89). Among these older Mexican-American women, cultural factors (language of interview, acculturation, fatalism) did not have a significant effect on screening use. CONCLUSION: Recent Pap smear use (64.1%) falls well below the year 2010 goal of 90%. Efforts need to be made to overcome barriers to Pap smear utilization for these women, such as providing access to female medical care.     

Inequalities in Pap smear screening for cervical cancer in Brazil

Objective

To examine the risk factors associated with never being screened for cervical cancer (CC) in Brazil.

Methods

Using the National Household Sample Survey 2008 (PNAD), we analyzed data from 102,108 Brazilian women ages 25–64 years. The patients were analyzed as having been or never having been screened with a Pap smear (Yes/No). Age-adjusted prevalence of never-screening was analyzed using a Chi-squared test. Crude and adjusted models using Poisson regression were performed.

Results

The prevalence of never-screened women for CC was 12.9%, 11.5% and 22.2% in Brazil in general, urban and rural areas, respectively. The Brazilian region with the highest prevalence of never-screening was the North (17.4%, 14.7% and 27.3% in general, urban and rural areas, respectively). The factors associated with a higher risk for never being screened were the following: poverty, younger age, lower educational level, non-white skin color, a greater number of children, no supplemental health insurance and not having visited a doctor in the past 12 months.

Conclusion

Socioeconomic and demographic conditions lead to inequalities in access to Pap smear screening in Brazil. Public health policy addressing these risk groups is necessary.     

Pap smear rates among Haitian immigrant women in eastern Massachusetts

OBJECTIVE: Given limited prior evidence of high rates of cervical cancer in Haitian immigrant women in the U.S., this study was designed to examine self-reported Pap smear screening rates for Haitian immigrant women and compare them to rates for women of other ethnicities. METHODS: Multi-ethnic women at least 40 years of age living in neighborhoods with large Haitian immigrant populations in eastern Massachusetts were surveyed in 2000-2002. Multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to examine the effect of demographic and health care characteristics on Pap smear rates. RESULTS: Overall, 81% (95% confidence interval 79%, 84%) of women in the study sample reported having had a Pap smear within three years. In unadjusted analyses, Pap smear rates differed by ethnicity (p=0.003), with women identified as Haitian having a lower crude Pap smear rate (78%) than women identified as African American (87%), English-speaking Caribbean (88%), or Latina (92%). Women identified as Haitian had a higher rate than women identified as non-Hispanic white (74%). Adjustment for differences in demographic factors known to predict Pap smear acquisition (age, marital status, education level, and household income) only partially accounted for the observed difference in Pap smear rates. However, adjustment for these variables as well as those related to health care access (single site for primary care, health insurance status, and physician gender) eliminated the ethnic difference in Pap smear rates. CONCLUSIONS: The lower crude Pap smear rate for Haitian immigrants relative to other women of color was in part due to differences in (1) utilization of a single source for primary care, (2) health insurance, and (3) care provided by female physicians. Public health programs, such as the cancer prevention programs currently utilized in eastern Massachusetts, may influence these factors. Thus, the relatively high Pap rate among women in this study may reflect the success of these programs. Public health and elected officials will need to consider closely how implementing or withdrawing these programs may impact immigrant and minority communities.     

Mammography and Pap smear screening of Yaqui Indian women.

The Pascua-Yaqui Tribe of Arizona receives its health care services at a local neighborhood health center in Tucson and a satellite clinic located on the reservation. Using a computerized data base from the health center, the authors determined the use rates by Pascua-Yaqui women ages 35-65 of the Papanicolaou smear and mammography screening. Among active users of the health center, 31-36 percent had received a Papanicolaou smear, according to the yearly data bases examined from 1986 to 1990, while 65 percent of the women had received at least one smear test over the entire 5-year period. Regarding mammography screening, 41-43 percent of the women ages 50-65 had received a mammogram in the years studied, and 51-58 percent of the women ages 40-49 had been screened. In all, 67 percent had received at least one mammogram during the 1988-90 period when the center offered mammography. This population of 35-65-year-old American Indian women, for whom financial access is not a barrier, were receiving Papanicolaou smears and mammograms at rates comparable with other segments of the U.S. population but at lower rates than those recommended by the American Cancer Society and National Cancer Institute. The challenge for the health center is to reach those women who are eligible for services but do not use them and to address the nonfinancial barriers to care such as language, transportation, and gender-specific issues.     

Community-based cultural predictors of Pap smear screening in Nova Scotia

BACKGROUND: Pap smear screening is effective in reducing the incidence of cervical cancer. However, some subgroups of women are less likely to be screened than others. Since Canadian provincial health databases do not contain data fields identifying ethnicity or language, analyses employing these variables are typically not available. This paper overcomes this problem by using community- rather than person-based measures. Associations with having had a recent Pap smear are reported by community income, language, ethnic group, and urban/rural status, as well as the woman's age. METHODS: The provincial Health Card Number and Cytology Registries were linked to ascertain the screening status of women in mainland Nova Scotia and Cape Breton. Postal codes were linked to census enumeration areas and then to Statistics Canada census data to create community-based cultural measures for each woman. RESULTS: Women in mainland Nova Scotia were more likely to have had a recent Pap smear (Odds Ratio (OR)=1.36; 95% Confidence Interval (CI):1.33-1.39). Women living in low income (OR=1.19; CI:1.15-1.22), Aboriginal (OR=1.60; CI:1.46-1.76), mixed Black (OR=1.25; CI:1.19-1.30) and rural (OR=1.09; CI:1.07-1.11) communities and who were older were less likely to have had a recent Pap smear. DISCUSSION: These findings were not unexpected. In the United States and elsewhere, associations between Pap screening status and women with low income, rural residence, Aboriginal and Black heritage have been reported using person-based methods. Our findings demonstrate a method of providing measures of ethnicity and language that should be considered for use in Canadian studies of service utilization, disease status, and well-being.     

Evaluation of a mass-media-led campaign to increase Pap smear screening

A health education campaign designed to encourage women between the ages of 18 and 70, especially 'older' women (defined as those 50 and over), to have a Pap smear took place in New South Wales (NSW), Australia in early 1988. The campaign involved the mass media, some related community activities and mailing of an educational package to all General Practitioners. According to a sample survey the media campaign was recalled by just over 40% of its target audience. Outcome evaluation was based on the analysis of Pap smear records for a representative 10% sample (N = 338 000) of women registered with the Australian universal health insurance scheme in NSW and three control States. From logistic regression models we estimate that, for women over 50 years and older in NSW, there was a 30% increase overall in Pap smears during the 4 months following the campaign and a 50% increase amongst those who had not had a smear in the previous 2 years. Smaller increases were observed in some other States. Increases of 13-20% were observed among the younger age groups in NSW. Although the campaign appears to have prompted short-term increases in screening rates, the effect is too small to make a substantial impact on the size of the under-screened population.     

Accuracy of women''s self-report of their last Pap smear.

We compared interview data and physician records on when women last had a Pap smear in a sample of 98 rural Black women. We found 20 per cent of women could not accurately report on whether a Pap smear had been done within three years (sensitivity = 0.95, specificity = 0.47). Source of gynecological care and perceived barriers to obtaining a Pap smear but not education were associated with inaccurate reports. Self-report may be a misleading measure of Pap smear screening in comparable groups of women.