Cervical screening uptake in immunocompromised women in Waikato, New Zealand

A one-year retrospective case study was undertaken of cervical cytology in two cohorts of immunocompromised women: those with HIV infection or renal transplants in the Waikato region of New Zealand. Uptake of cervical screening in the two groups was compared with national guidelines. The results showed that HIV patients' uptake was close to the national recommendation for annual cytology (84% had a smear in 18 months); they were more likely to have cytology performed in an HIV-related care setting. Renal transplant patients had lower uptake (56% in 18 months), a finding similar to internationally reported data. Local discussions of these results identified potential influencing factors, which included inadequate dissemination of updated guidelines and inadequate documentation of immunocompromised health status on the national cervical screening programme database. This audit supports including cervical cytology as part of an annual review in all immunocompromised patients.