[Image analysis study of squamous epithelial cells in cytological smears of the uterine cervix]

The automated image analysis is a method, which may model essential effects of the cytologist's perception, combined with an increase of objectivity. We studied 9136 epithelial cells from 105 suspension smears of the cervix by means of image analysis. The results show that the process of maturation of squamous cells can be represented by image analysis parameters. Such a model enables an opposition of processes of differentiation and dedifferentiation. Furthermore subvisual changes in visual inconspicuous intermediate cells can be proved, too which appear in different degree correlated with the grade of dedifferentiation. At present a study is designed to investigate cases without any atypical cells, but having been classified as "positive cases" by the evaluation of intermediate cells in a long term follow-up.