Comprehensive Details About
Colposcopy
A procedure to closely examine your cervix, vagina and vulva for signs of disease. During colposcopy, your doctor uses a special instrument called a colposcope.
A colposcopy is an in-office, noninvasive procedure to examine your vagina and cervix. The colposcope is positioned outside your vagina. By looking through the scope, your doctor at VERITAS OBGYN gets a magnified view of the tissues lining your vagina and cervix.
Your doctor may perform a colposcopy to diagnose the cause of abnormal bleeding or to look for signs of inflammation, polyps, or genital warts. However, a colposcopy is most often done when the results of a Pap smear indicate abnormal cellular changes.
What Does it Mean When I Have an Abnormal Pap Smear?
Your Pap smear is performed to screen for cervical cancer. During a Pap smear, your doctor removes a sample of cells from your cervix and sends it to a lab for evaluation.
If all the cells in your Pap smear are normal, you have negative results. When you have positive results, it means your sample contained some abnormal cells, which is called cervical dysplasia.
The report your doctor receives from the lab tells the degree of cervical dysplasia. While there are various stages reported, they essentially range from mild to cancerous. The lab may report that the cells were mildly abnormal and likely caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV). It could also say that moderate to severe precancerous or cancerous changes were identified.
When your test reports mild changes suggestive of an HPV infection, your doctor may wait a few months then take another Pap smear. In most cases, an HPV infection clears up without causing problems, so a follow-up test should be negative.
When your test reveals moderate to severe changes, and when a second Pap smear still shows HPV, you’ll undergo a colposcopy.
What Happens During a Colposcopy?
A colposcopy is usually carried out in a hospital or clinic. It should usually take 15 to 20 minutes to have your colposcopy and you should be able to go home afterwards.
But you might be at the hospital for several hours from getting there to going home.
When you arrive at the hospital or clinic, you’ll speak with a nurse about what’s going to happen during the colposcopy.
They will ask you some questions about your general health and your medical history.
Giving consent
A nurse or doctor will explain the possible risks of having a colposcopy.
The procedure is very safe, but afterwards there is a small chance of:
- getting a vaginal infection
- heavy bleeding
If anything like this does happen, the healthcare team will be there to look after you.
You’ll be asked to sign a consent form. This is to confirm that the procedure and the risks have been explained to you, and you agree to have the colposcopy as discussed with medical staff.
The procedure
A colposcopy is usually done by a specially trained nurse (colposcopist). Sometimes it may be done by a doctor.
Before the procedure you will be asked to remove your clothes, behind a screen, from the waist down. You may be given a sheet to cover yourself.
If you wear a loose skirt or a long jumper, you may be able to keep this on during the procedure.
You will be asked to lie down and put your legs on a padded support.
Further Treatment
If the doctor or nurse finds abnormal cells in your cervix, they may recommend removing them. This will reduce your risk of cervical cancer.
They may do this treatment on the same day as your colposcopy, or you might be asked to come back for another appointment.
After a Colposcopy
You can often go home to rest soon after the treatment is finished.
After a colposcopy you may have some mild pain, similar to period pain, for a few days. Taking a painkiller such as paracetamol can help.
You are also likely to have some bleeding and discharge from your vagina. If you had a colposcopy only, then the bleeding and discharge may pass after a few days.
Our Specialists
Pankak Singhal, MD, MS, MHCM, FACOG
Dr. Singhal is the Chairman of the Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology at Good Samaritan, as well as the System Chairman for Obstetrics, Gynecology and Women’s Health for Catholic Health Services. He earned his medical degree from Madras Medical College in India, as well as a master in health care management from Harvard University. He is an SRC-accredited Surgeon of Excellence with Good Samaritan’s Center of Excellence designations in Robotic Surgery and Minimally Invasive Gynecology.
Virginia Elizabeth Mclean, MD, FACOG
Dr. Virginia McLean, MD is an Obstetrics & Gynecology Specialist in New York, NY. Her office accepts telehealth appointments.
Dr. Mclean graduated from the Medical University of South Carolina College of Medicine in 2014. She works in Port Jefferson Station, NY and 8 other locations and specializes in Obstetrics & Gynecology.
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