CDC Guidelines for Cervical CancerScreening in HIV-Infected Women

1. All HIV-infected women should receive comprehensive gynecologicexaminations, including Papanicolaou (Pap) smears.

2. If the initial Pap smear is normal, a second evaluation should be done in sixmonths to reduce the likelihood of a false-negative initial test. If the initialtwo Pap smears are both negative, annual Pap smears are adequate.

3. If severe inflammation with reactive squamous cellular change is found,another Pap smear should be done within three months.

4. A squamous intraepithelial lesion or atypical squamous cells of undeterminedsignificance should prompt colposcopy and colposcopy-directed biopsy of thelower genital tract.

CDC = Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; HIV = humanimmunodeficiency virus.

Adapted from 1993 sexually transmitted diseases treatment guidelines. Centers forDisease Control and Prevention. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep1993;42(RR14):89-91.