Risk factors for treatment failure following cold coagulation cervical treatment for CIN pathology: a cohort-based...

To determine any risk factors for cytology recurrence in women after cold coagulation ablative treatment for cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN).

This was a retrospective observational study of a cohort of women having had cold coagulation between 2001 and 2011 in the colposcopy unit of an NHS hospital. We retrospectively collected data from our colposcopy unit database. Women with previous cervical treatment were excluded.

559 eligible women were identified with a mean age of 28.7 ± 6.2 years. Nulliparous women were 66.3 % with smokers involving 35.3 %. Referral cytology, pretreatment cervical punch biopsies and colposcopy were high grade in 51.9, 71.9 and 45.8 % of women. Endocervical crypt involvement (ECI) on pretreatment cervical punch biopsy involved 9.7 % of women. Mean follow-up was 3.1 ± 2.4 years. Overall cytology recurrence (mild/moderate/severe dyskaryosis) at 6 and 12 months follow-up was 7.4 and 5 %. High-grade cytology recurrence (moderate/severe dyskaryosis) involved 2.7 % of women over the entire follow-up period. Multiple regression analysis showed that ECI on pretreatment cervical punch biopsy was a risk factor for high-grade cytology recurrence (HR 3.72; 95 %CI 1.18-11.71; p = 0.024). There were no risk factors identified for overall cytology recurrence. However, when cytology tests with borderline nuclear changes at follow-up were pooled with mild/moderate/severe dyskaryosis cytology tests, then parity ≥2 was a risk factor for abnormal cytology (HR 1.71; 95 %CI 1.08-2.69; p = 0.022).

Endocervical crypt involvement on pretreatment cervical punch biopsy and multiparity ≥2 are risk factors that increase the likelihood of abnormal cytology following cold coagulation. These two risk factors should be taken in consideration when performing cold coagulation cervical treatment for CIN pathology.