Cryosurgery in the management of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia

Cryosurgery is an outpatient modality capable of destroying cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN). Among 770 patients treated with cryosurgery who had at least two follow-up Papanicolaou smears, a persistence of CIN was noted in 10%. It was more difficult to destroy CIN III disease and large lesions (more than 50% of the cervix involved), although grade appeared to be more important than size of the lesion. Many patients with a persistent lesion were retreated as outpatients; as a result, in more than 96% of the 770 patients the lesion was eradicated.