Prevalence of cervical cytological abnormalities in Turkey

ObjectiveTo evaluate retrospectively the prevalence of cervical cytological abnormalities in patient records obtained from healthcare centers in Turkey.MethodDemographic characteristics and data on cervical cytological abnormalities were evaluated from patients who underwent Pap tests in healthcare centers in 2007.ResultsData were collected from 33 healthcare centers totaling 140 334 patients. Overall, the prevalence of cervical cytological abnormalities was 1.8%; the prevalence of ASCUS, ASC-H, LSIL, HSIL, and AGC was 1.07%, 0.07%, 0.3%, 0.17%, and 0.08%, respectively. The prevalence of preinvasive cervical neoplasia was 1.7% and the prevalence of cytologically diagnosed invasive neoplasia was 0.06%.ConclusionThe abnormal cervical cytological prevalence rate in Turkey is lower than in Europe and North America. This might be due to sociocultural differences, lack of population-based screening programs, or a lower HPV prevalence rate in Turkey.