Endocervical component: Is it a determinant of specimen adequacy?

There is controversy in the literature concerning the presence or absence of an endocervical component as a determinant of the adequacy of cervical cellular samples. The purpose of this retrospective 2‐yr study (January 1, 1999–December 31, 2000) was to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of ThinPrep® Pap Tests™ with the presence or absence of an endocervical component from 151 women with subsequent tissue‐verified cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) II/III. Of the 138 Pap Tests™ containing an endocervical component, 100 (73%) showed exact cyto/histologic correlation and 38 (27%) were discordant. Of the 13 Pap Tests™ lacking an endocervical component, 10 (77%) showed exact correlation and 3 (23%) were discordant. Statistical analysis showed no significant difference in the detection of a high‐grade squamous intraepithelial lesion (HSIL) in those ThinPreps that contained an endocervical component from those that did not (P > 0.5). Further analysis of the 41 discordant ThinPrep® Pap Tests™ showed no significant difference between negative Pap Tests™ and discordant, yet abnormal Pap Tests™ (atypical squamous cells of undetermined significance, or low‐grade squamous intraepithelial lesions) and the presence or absence of an endocervical component (P = 0.25). The results of this study seem to indicate that the issue of the lack of an endocervical component as a determinant of cervical specimen adequacy should be revisited. Diagn. Cytopathol. 2002;26:53–55. © 2002 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.