Colposcopy is a minimally invasive method of endoscopic examination, the essence of which consists in an on-site examination of the cervix with a device resembling a microscope externally, called a colposcope. The value of colposcopy is difficult to overestimate: this method allows you to diagnose in the early stages of a variety of gynecological pathologies, for example, cervical erosion, as well as precancerous conditions and cervical cancer.
Colposcopy of the cervix during pregnancy is one of the mandatory studies in obstetrics. Yes, in most cases gynecological pathology during pregnancy is not treated, and the results of this study will be relevant even after childbirth. But given the unfavorable situation regarding pregnancy planning and responsible attitude towards conception in modern society, often gynecological pathology and precancerous conditions, and sometimes cervical cancer, are diagnosed during pregnancy. These diseases complicate the course of pregnancy and make it impossible physiological labor: delivery in such cases is performed with the help of caesarean section.
Colposcopy during pregnancy is carried out in a planned manner in the direction of an obstetrician-gynecologist, with complete well-being or with possible pathology. Many pregnant women are frightened when they are prescribed colposcopy - the direction to the study does not at all mean the presence of pathology, this is a routine study necessary to protect a woman from complications in childbirth.
How to prepare for colposcopy?
Special preparation for colposcopy is not required. The only requirement is the absence of menstruation. Out of pregnancy, colposcopy is best done from the 9th to the 20th day of the cycle.
Can I get pregnant with colposcopy?
Not only it is possible, but also it is necessary. However, colposcopy is undesirable in the early stages of pregnancy, as it can cause spontaneous abortion. In any case, colposcopy to pregnant women is carried out very carefully and sparingly, as during pregnancy it is recommended to reduce the number of any invasive studies, especially in the pelvic area.
Colposcopy to pregnant women is performed according to the same technique as for women outside the situation, with one difference: in the absence of pathology, colposcopy samples ( cytology with solutions of Lugol and Schiller) are not available to pregnant women. However, if there is a suspicion of a precancerous condition, even a pregnant biopsy of affected areas is performed without fail! Since the cervix is devoid of sensitive nerve endings, this procedure is painless, but it does not give pleasant sensations. When carrying out a biopsy, there may be scanty suppository emissions within the next 24 hours, this is normal.
There are some types of erosions that are better to treat during pregnancy. Therefore, often a doctor, after receiving the results of colposcopy, can offer a sparing treatment during pregnancy, since a changed hormonal background can contribute to healing of erosion.
Colposcopy is performed after childbirth to assess the condition of the cervix after physiological labor or when an episiotomy is used to assess the presence of tears and cervical lesions. In the event of erosion of the cervix, the risk of rupture in the delivery increases.
Colposcopy before IVF is performed for the same purpose as in pregnancy - assessment of the possibility of physiological birth and exclusion of diseases and precancerous conditions. But in the presence of serious pathologies - cervical dysplasia and cervical cancer, IVF can be contraindicated. However, more often this diagnosis becomes a contraindication in the case of the presence of another severe extragenital pathology.