Immediate histopathologic correlation in Turkish population with negative cytology and high‐risk human papillomavirus positivity: A retrospective analysis of high‐risk human papillomavirus genotype and stratified by age

Abstract

IntroductionAccording to the American Society of Colposcopy and Cervical Pathology (ASCCP) recommendations, regardless of age, women with high‐risk infections other than human papillomavirus 16/18 positivity (other hrHPV) and negative cytology should not be referred directly to colposcopy. Several studies compared detection rates of ≥high‐grade squamous intraepithelial lesion (HSIL) between HPV 16/18 ± 45, and other hrHPV types on colposcopic biopsy.MethodsWe designed a retrospective study to determine the presence of ≥HSIL in colposcopic biopsy in women with negative cytology and hrHPV positivity during the years 2016–2022.ResultsHPV 16/18/45 had a PPV of 43.8%, while other hrHPV types had a PPV of 29.1% for a tissue diagnosis of ≥HSIL. For a tissue diagnosis of ≥HSIL detection, there was no statistically significant difference between the PPV of other hrHPV and HPV 16/18/45 in patients ≥30. There were only two cases with a tissue diagnosis of ≥HSIL in the other hrHPV group of women under 30 years of age.ConclusionWe suggested that the follow‐up recommendations of ASCCP for patients above the age of 30 with negative cytology and other hrHPV positivity may not be fully applicable to countries like Turkey with a different healthcare environment. Referring to patients ≥30 who had other hrHPV positivity and negative cytology to direct colposcopy may be clinically beneficial, particularly in populations where a colposcopic examination is easy and inexpensive.