Use of the Cytobrush for cervical sampling after cryotherapy.

The presence of endocervical cells in routine gynecologic smears (prepared from spatula and cotton swab samples) and Cytobrush smears was analyzed in 52 patients with a history of prior cryotherapy. These cases represented 11% of the 491 women evaluated using both techniques between August 1, 1987, and January 31, 1990. The routine smear contained endocervical cells in 25 (48%) of the 52 cases while the Cytobrush smear contained endocervical cells in 49 (94%) of the cases. The use of the Cytobrush for cervical cytologic screening thus appears to be of value in patients with a prior history of cryotherapy, which frequently renders the transformation zone less accessible to routine sampling.