[Unexpected positive results in vaginal smears]

Cervicovaginal cytological screening is carried out nowadays at a periodicity dictated by epidemiological experience, in order to detect neoplastic lesions as early as possible. When the vaginal smear test gives an unexpected positive result, a certain number of problems arise which not only relate to the development of lesions but also involve the gynecologist, the laboratory technician and the patient herself. The authors have used three different surveys to study the frequency of this situation and its etiological circumstances, in order to define the conditions that optimize reliability of the cytological examination in daily practice.