Periodic preventive examination by a gynecologist is a necessity, even if there are no alarming signs indicating the presence of a disease. Such a woman's disease, which affects the cells of the epithelium in the vaginal part of the cervix and cervical canal, like leukopathy of the cervix, does not cause any discomfort or painful sensations in the patient. Symptoms of cervical leukoplakia are simply absent. Very rarely there can be only a slight itch. This pathological process is benign. If it is not detected in time and treatment is not started, the disease can be transformed into cervical cancer.
Types of leukoplakia:
- scaly (the epithelium of the cervix loses glycogen, as a result of which it hardens, crumbles, thickens and protrudes considerably above the surface in the form of white or gray plaques);
- thin or simple leukoplakia of the cervix (poorly visible during visual examination, additional laboratory tests are needed to diagnose it).
Causes of cervical leukoplakia
Causes of changes in the epithelial tissue of the cervix are the following:
- dysfunction of the ovaries;
- viral infections (herpes, papillomavirus and others);
- erosion;
- traumatization;
- violation of hormonal balance.
Diagnosis of leukoplakia:
- Extended coloscopy (cells are examined under magnification up to thirty times, while using Lugol's solution to determine the size and contours of plaques);
- cytological examination (analysis of a smear taken from the vaginal mucosa in which keratinized cells are detected);
- histological examinations (for this, a piece of affected tissue is taken for analysis and the presence of atypical cells, i.e., cervical cancer) is checked.
A concomitant obligatory study is conducted to identify papillomavirus.
How to treat leukoplakia of the cervix?
Treatment of leukoplakia is carried out exclusively with the help of surgical intervention.
The use of traditional medicine methods is unacceptable (tampons with oils and tinctures), as in most cases it causes cell growth and leads to cervical cancer.
During treatment and for one and a half months after that, it is not recommended to have sex life and use chemical contraceptives that can adversely affect the cervix.