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Fulltext Nationwide Survey of Knowledge and Health Beliefs regarding Human Papillomavirus among HPV-Vaccinated Female Students in Malaysia

Wong LP, Raja Muhammad Yusoff RN, Edib Z, Sam IC, Zimet GD

PLoS One, 2016 09 22;11(9):e0163156.
PMID: 27656876 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0163156

The National HPV Immunization Programme, which offers free human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines to teenaged female students, was launched in Malaysia in 2010. HPV vaccination paired with adequate knowledge about HPV infection provides the best protection against cervical cancer. To identify the level of knowledge and the health beliefs towards HPV and the HPV vaccine among HPV-vaccinated female students in Malaysia. A nationwide cross-sectional survey among 14 years old female students who had received three doses of the HPV vaccine was conducted in 32 randomly selected schools from 13 states and 3 federal territories in Malaysia between February 2013 and April 2013. Among 2482 respondents, knowledge about HPV infection and the HPV vaccine was extremely poor. The mean total knowledge score was only 3.56 (SD ± 1.76), out of a possible score of 10. The majority of respondents were unaware that vaccinating boys with HPV can help protect girls against HPV infection (91.6%), HPV cannot be cured (81.6%) and that HPV is a sexually transmitted infection (70.3%). Most of the respondents had the misconception that only females get HPV (95.1%), and that the HPV vaccine eliminates the need for Pap smear tests (68.3%). Most respondents (91.6%) believed that they would not get an HPV infection. Almost half of the respondents (42.9%) held the misconception that HPV infection could not lead to serious illness. Findings revealed poor knowledge about both HPV and the HPV vaccine, low perceived susceptibility to HPV infection and misinformation about HPV infection among HPV-vaccinated girls. Therefore, it is essential to increase the knowledge and awareness of health risks regarding HPV infection among teenaged girls who have received the HPV vaccine.

Matched MeSH terms: Vaginal Smears
Fulltext A review of cervical cancer research in Malaysia

Zaridah S

Med J Malaysia, 2014 Aug;69 Suppl A:33-41.
PMID: 25417949 MyJurnal

Despite cervical cancer being potentially preventable, it is the second most common cancer among women in Malaysia. One hundred and five articles related to Cervical Cancer were found in a search through a database dedicated to indexing all original data relevant to medicine published in Malaysia between the years 2000-2013. Fifty seven articles were selected and reviewed for the articles' clinical relevance and future research implications. This article reviews the various aspects of cervical cancer in Malaysia, mainly persistent infection of high risk human papillomavirus (HPV), primary prevention (HPV vaccination), screening method (Pap smear issues), and the attitude and knowledge of various groups of Malaysian women that contributed to the failure to reduce the incidence and mortality of cervical cancer. Most of the studies focused on prevention, Pap smear issues, HPV DNA testing, HPV vaccination and various recommendations for prevention of cervical cancer. Secondary prevention by screening is still an important aspect because even with HPV vaccination, screening still plays an important role as vaccination does not cover all high risk HPVs. There is a need to seriously consider a properly organised screening programme, taking into consideration what we already know about the attitude and knowledge of Malaysian women, economic factors and psychosocial issues of the screening method. There is also a large gap in clinical studies on the outcome, management and survival of cervical cancer patients in Malaysia.

Matched MeSH terms: Vaginal Smears
Fulltext Remeasurement, evaluation and comparison the health services utilization among women staff at Universiti Kebangsaaan Malaysia after eleven years period (2001-2012)

Siti Fatimah, A.G., Aniza, I., Shamsuddin, K., Zailiza, S.

Malaysian Journal of Public Health Medicine, 2013;13(2):48-64.
MyJurnal

A cross-sectional study was carried out in July-October 2012 in UKM to remeasure, evaluate and compare the changes in health services utilization level among women staff in UKM with a previous study done in 2001 and its influencing factors. The services studied were blood pressure (BP) measurement and Pap smear test. A total of 234 respondents aged between 18 and 55 were selected using stratified random sampling from Bangi, Kuala Lumpur and UKMMC, Malaysia. Data was collected via self-administered questionnaire and was analyzed by using SPSS version 17.0. Majority 85.9% of the respondents were found to have utilized at least one BP measurement which is higher compared to previous study. The Pap smear test, 64.5% of women have had a Pap smear test done also higher compared to previous study. Multivariate analysis shows the factors associated with BP measurement are age (OR 2.7, CI 95% 1.2, 6.3), family history of general health problems (OR 3.4, CI 95% 1.5, 7.6), and health staff influence (OR 5.2, CI 95% 1.1, 25.5). The factors associated with Pap smear test are marital status (OR 62.8, CI 95% 7.2, 546.4), general health problems (OR 2.3, CI 95% 1.2, 4.5), family planning (OR 6.9, CI 95% 3.0, 16.5) and self-interest (OR 3.3, CI 95%, 1.3, 8.6). The level of health services utilization on BP measurement and Pap smear test in 2012 is higher than 2001. For both BP measurement and Pap smear test the determinant factors are differed in the aforesaid years.

Matched MeSH terms: Vaginal Smears
Fulltext Awareness of cervical cancer among women in Malaysia

Seng LM, Rosman AN, Khan A, Haris NM, Mustapha NAS, Husaini NSM, et al.

Int J Health Sci (Qassim), 2018 7 20;12(4):42-48.
PMID: 30022903

Objectives: The purpose of this study is to evaluate and ascertain the current knowledge, perception, level of awareness, and attitudes toward cervical cancer (CC) among women in Malaysia.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted which involved 210 women aged between 21 and 60 years old at the public in Malaysia, a subsequent statistical analysis was performed by SPSS version 22.

Results: In comparison with other studies, there is still lacking of awareness on CC and these induced informal cluelessness and poor attitudes toward it. In terms of risk factors, there are two factors with some degree of awareness among women in Malaysia, i.e., multiple sexual partners and sexually transmitted diseases. Women in Malaysia have less awareness on the causes and clinical manifestations of the disease (P < 0.05). They are aware that regular papanicolaou (Pap) smear would screen CC and surgery could be a treatment of choice. In addition, women in Malaysia also have moderate awareness about Pap smear as prevention to detect and prevent CC at the early stage.

Conclusions: Women in Malaysia only has a good awareness about multiple sex partner and sexually transmitted disease as a risk factor for CC, they also have good knowledge on regular Pap smear as a tool to diagnose and surgery as a treatment. Future, further effort is required to promote awareness of women's perception and attitudes toward CC.

Matched MeSH terms: Vaginal Smears
Changes in Knee Laxity and Relaxin Receptor Isoforms Expression (RXFP1/RXFP2) in the Knee throughout Estrous Cycle Phases in Rodents

Dehghan F, Soori R, Dehghan P, Gholami K, Muniandy S, Azarbayjani MA, et al.

PLoS One, 2016;11(8):e0160984.
PMID: 27513858 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0160984

The changes in knee laxity and relaxin receptor expression at different phases of rodent estrous cycle are not known. Here, changes in the parameter were investigated in rats at different phases of the estrous cycle. Estrous cycle phases of intact female rats were determined by cytological examination of the vaginal smear. Following phase identification, blood was collected for serum hormone analyses. Knee passive range of motion (ROM) was determined by using a digital miniature goniometer. The animals were then sacrificed and patellar tendon, collateral ligaments and hamstring muscles were harvested for relaxin/insulin-like family peptide receptor 1 and 2 (RXFP1/RXFP2) analyses. Knee passive ROM was the highest at proestrus followed by diestrus and the lowest at estrus. Estrogen level was the highest at proestrus while progesterone and relaxin levels were the highest at diestrus. A strong correlation was observed between relaxin and progesterone levels. At proestrus, expression of RXFP1 and RXFP2 proteins and mRNAs were the highest at proestrus followed by diestrus and estrus. The finding shows that higher level of progesterone and relaxin in diestrus might be responsible for higher laxity of knee joint in rats.

Matched MeSH terms: Vaginal Smears
Fulltext Cervical screening in elderly women in Singapore

Ho T, Yoong T

Singapore Med J, 1996 Feb;37(1):61-5.
PMID: 8783916

The study was conducted to determine the pick-up rate of abnormal cervical smears and the prevalence rate of cervical cancer in women aged 60 years and above and the demographic characteristics of the women screened. The pick-up rate of abnormal cervical smears was 1.65%. The prevalence rate for cervical intraepithelial neoplasia and frank carcinoma was 6.4 and 5.0 per thousand women screened respectively. The study group comprised 89.7% Chinese, 4.7% Malays, 3.6% Indians and 2.0% Others. The pick-up rate of abnormal smears was 1.9% in the Chinese and 1.3% in the Indians. There were no abnormal smears in the Malays and Others. The results demonstrate the importance of a routine cervical cancer screening programme among elderly women aged 60 years and above in Singapore.

Matched MeSH terms: Vaginal Smears
Fulltext Knowledge, attitude and practice of Pap smear screening among women in Gombak District, Selangor

Ng Pei Ting, Nurul Azira Ismail, Noor Izzah Abd Rahman, Yasohdha Anne Sundraraj

Malaysian Journal of Medicine and Health Sciences, 2020;16(101):82-87.
MyJurnal

Introduction: Cervical cancer is the third most common cancer among women in Malaysia with an estimation of 1,682 new cases and 944 deaths as reported in the year 2018, and these statistics are expected to increase by the year 2025. Early detection of cervical cancer through Pap smear screening may prevent an increase in incidence. Hence, this study was aimed to determine the knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) towards Pap smear screening in the urban community. Methods: Cross-sectional study was conducted to determine the prevalence of Pap smear screening and association with KAP among 246 randomly selected women. Primary data was collected by using a self-administered online questionnaire and analysed using SPSS version 23. Results: Prevalence of Pap smear screen- ing was recorded at 46.6%. Mean score for knowledge was 0.858±0.247, the attitude was 0.847±0.156 and practice was 0.423±0.426. There is a significant difference in KAP towards Pap smear screening (p

Matched MeSH terms: Vaginal Smears
The "adequate" Pap smear - importance of endocervical cells

Pillay B, Yap SK

Family Physician, 1989;1:47-48.

Matched MeSH terms: Vaginal Smears
Comparative study of cytologic and colposcopic findings in preclinical cervical cancer

Maziah AM, Sharifah NA, Yahya A

Malays J Pathol, 1991 Dec;13(2):105-8.
PMID: 1823091

Seventy-seven patients who had PAP smear cytology and colposcopic examination in a 2-year period between 1988 and 1989 were reviewed. Those with findings indicative or suspicious of malignancy were subjected to biopsy. All 50 patients thus biopsied were confirmed to have preclinical cancer on histological examination. Compared against histology, PAP smear cytology gave an accuracy rate of 90% (5 false negatives) and colposcopy gave an accuracy rate of 94% (3 false negatives). These results demonstrate that the two techniques are useful as screening tests for preclinical cervical cancer. The results are improved if they are used complementarily. However, there was poor specificity in the categorisation of cervical cancer by both methods. This was probably due to the subjectiveness of the two procedures. The study also raised the possibility of a higher incidence of preclinical cervical cancer in the Chinese ethnic group.

Matched MeSH terms: Vaginal Smears*
Fulltext The feasibility and acceptability of self-sampling and HPV testing using Cepheid Xpert® HPV in a busy primary care facility

Woo YL

Journal of virus eradication, 2019 Mar 04;5(Suppl 1):10-11.
PMID: 30997147

Malaysia's approach to reducing the burden of HPV-related disease has centred on adolescent vaccination and cervical screening with Pap smears. While the vaccination programme has been broadly successful, Pap smear screening has been less successful. In an effort to improve screening uptake, the ROSE 1.0 pilot aimed to create more efficient screening, with improved quality and lower total cost.

Matched MeSH terms: Vaginal Smears
Fulltext The Acceptability and Preference of Vaginal Self-sampling for Human Papillomavirus (HPV) Testing among a Multi-ethnic Asian Female Population

Khoo SP, Lim WT, Rajasuriar R, Nasir NH, Gravitt P, Woo YL

Cancer Prev Res (Phila), 2021 01;14(1):105-112.
PMID: 32917643 DOI: 10.1158/1940-6207.CAPR-20-0280

Vaginal self-sampling for human papillomavirus (HPV) testing can potentially increase cervical screening coverage. This study aimed to investigate the acceptability of vaginal self-sampling for HPV testing and factors that might influence a woman's preference for this as a cervical screening method. This was a cross-sectional study that recruited 725 women from the urban and suburban areas of Selangor, Malaysia. All study participants were instructed to self-collect vaginal sample using a dry flocked swab before responding to a detailed questionnaire documenting their experience and preference for self-sampling. Most of the study participants (>80%) perceived vaginal self-sampling as easy, convenient, not embarrassing, comfortable, and were confident in performing the test. This suggests high acceptability toward vaginal self-sampling for HPV testing. Of the 725 women, 83% preferred self-sampling HPV testing over healthcare personnel sampling HPV testing and Pap test. Women with higher household income and full-time employment status were more likely to prefer self-sampling. Those who had not undergone Pap test also expressed preference for self-sampling HPV testing. Convenience and women's confidence in performing a vaginal self-sampling for HPV testing were the independent key factors that influenced the preference for self-sampling method. Vaginal self-sampling for HPV testing is highly acceptable among Malaysian women. It is the preferred choice as a primary cervical screening method and serves as an alternative to healthcare-acquired sample for Pap test. PREVENTION RELEVANCE: Organized cervical cancer screening remains unachievable in many countries. Self-sampling HPV testing is an evidence-based method that can remove barriers to cervical screening. This is particularly important for developing countries in order to achieve the WHO global strategy to accelerate cervical cancer elimination.

Matched MeSH terms: Vaginal Smears/psychology; Vaginal Smears/statistics & numerical data
Fulltext Attitudes and factors affecting acceptability of self-administered cervicovaginal sampling for human papillomavirus (HPV) genotyping as an alternative to Pap testing among multiethnic Malaysian women

Ma'som M, Bhoo-Pathy N, Nasir NH, Bellinson J, Subramaniam S, Ma Y, et al.

BMJ Open, 2016 08 04;6(8):e011022.
PMID: 27491667 DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2015-011022

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to determine the attitudes and acceptability of self-administered cervicovaginal sampling compared with conventional physician-acquired Papanicolaou (Pap) smear among multiethnic Malaysian women.

METHOD: A cross-sectional study was carried out via interviewer-administered surveys from August 2013 through August 2015 at five government-run, urban health clinics in the state of Selangor. Subjects were participants from an ongoing community-based human papillomavirus (HPV) prevalence study who answered a standard questionnaire before and after self-sampling. The cervicovaginal self-sampling for HPV genotyping was performed using a simple brush ('Just for Me'; Preventive Oncology International, Hong Kong). Detailed data on sociodemographics, previous Pap smear experience, and attitudes towards self-administered cervicovaginal sampling were collected and analysed. Acceptability was inferred using a five-item Likert scale that included six different subjective descriptives: experience, difficulty, convenience, embarrassment, discomfort or pain, and confidence in collecting one's own sample.

RESULTS: Of the 839 participants, 47.9% were Malays, followed by 30.8% Indians, 18.8% Chinese and 2.5% from other ethnicities. The median age of the participants was 38 years (IQR 30-48). Some 68.2% of participants indicated a preference for self-sampling over the Pap test, with 95% indicating willingness to follow-up a positive result at the hospital. Age, ethnicity and previous Pap test experience were significant independent factors associated with preference for self-sampling. The older the individual, the less likely they were to prefer self-sampling (adjusted OR 0.94, 95% CI 0.90 to 0.98). The Chinese were less likely to prefer self-sampling (72.6%) than the Malays (85.1%) (adjusted OR 0.57, 95% CI 0.33 to 0.98, p=0.004). Participants who had never undergone a Pap smear were also more likely to prefer self-sampling (88.5%) than women who had undergone a previous Pap (80.9%) (adjusted OR 0.06, 95% CI 0.35 to 0.87).

CONCLUSIONS: Overall, urban Malaysian women from multiethnic backgrounds found self-sampling to be an acceptable alternative to Pap smear.

Matched MeSH terms: Vaginal Smears/methods
Knowledge and attitudes about HPV infection, HPV vaccination, and cervical cancer among rural southeast Asian women

Wong LP

Int J Behav Med, 2011 Jun;18(2):105-11.
PMID: 20524163 DOI: 10.1007/s12529-010-9104-y

BACKGROUND: The incidence of cervical cancer in developing countries is high and even higher among women in rural areas in these countries.
PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to assess the knowledge and attitudes towards human papillomavirus (HPV), HPV vaccination, and cervical cancer among young women in rural settings in a Southeast Asia country.
METHODS: A convenience sample of ethnically diverse young rural women in Malaysia was surveyed. Participants were interviewed using a standard questionnaire.
RESULTS: Among the participants (N = 449), knowledge of HPV, HPV vaccination, cervical screening, and cervical cancer risk factors was extremely poor. The mean total knowledge score (14 items) was 2.37 (SD ± 1.97). Although many had never heard of the newly released HPV vaccine, two-thirds professed an intention to receive the HPV vaccine. Intention to receive the vaccine was significantly associated with knowledge of cervical screening and cervical cancer risk factors (OR 1.17; 95% CI 1.03-1.33; P = 0.013). Reasons for vaccine refusal were doubts about safety and efficacy of the new vaccine (27.4%), perceived embarrassment at receiving an STI vaccine (20.7%), and perception of not being at risk of HPV infection (20.0%).
CONCLUSIONS: Providing HPV education to the rural residents is a high priority.

Matched MeSH terms: Vaginal Smears
Fulltext Prevention of cervical cancer by Human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination and early detection through effective screening: a review

Win Win Than, Tin Sabai Aung

Malaysian Journal of Medicine and Health Sciences, 2019;15(106):74-74.
MyJurnal

Introduction: Cervical cancer remains the second commonest female malignancy worldwide and the seventh among Malaysians. Globally in 2012, an estimated 528 000 women developed cervical cancer and almost 266 000 died from this disease. Of all cervical cancers, 83% occur in the less developed world due to the absence of screening. To promote the community health awareness of cervical cancer which is preventable. Methods: By internet literature searching (Google Scholar) and textbooks. Results: The primary cause of cervical pre-cancer and cancer is persistent infection with one or more of the oncogenic types of HPV, the most common infection acquired during sexual inter-course, usually early in sexual life. Cervical cancer due to HPV can be prevented by HPV vaccination, participation in a screening program, avoidance of smoking, limitation of sex partners and use of a condom. Three HPV vaccines are available worldwide such as bivalent HPV 16/18 vaccine, quadrivalent HPV 16/18/6/11 L1 virus-like particles vaccine and 9-valent HPV 6/11/16/18/31/33/45/52/58 recombinant vaccine. The HPV test can be done on the same sample of cells collected from the Pap test and it can help to know HPV types. Conclusion: Cervical cancer due to HPV can be prevented by vaccination and the pre-cancerous phase of cervical cancer can be screened by the HPV testing with the Pap test. The community health awareness plays a major role in cervical cancer prevention.

Matched MeSH terms: Vaginal Smears
Fulltext Health Literacy, Knowledge on Cervical Cancer and Pap Smear and Its Influence on Pre-Marital Malay Muslim Women Attitude towards Pap Smear

Baharum NN, Ariffin F, Isa MR, Tin ST

Asian Pac J Cancer Prev, 2020 Jul 01;21(7):2021-2028.
PMID: 32711428 DOI: 10.31557/APJCP.2020.21.7.2021

BACKGROUND: Cervical cancer is preventable. In Malaysia, women are found to have good awareness of the disease and yet, the Pap smear uptake is still poor. Measuring health literacy level could explain this discrepancy. This study aims to determine the relationship between health literacy, level of knowledge of cervical cancer and Pap smear with attitude towards Pap smear among women attending pre-marital course.
METHODS: A cross sectional study was performed in three randomly selected centres that organised pre-marital courses. All Malay Muslim women participants aged 18 to 40 years old were recruited while non-Malaysian, illiterate, and had hysterectomy were excluded. Validated self-administered questionnaires used were European Health Literacy Questionnaire (HLS-EU-Q16 Malay) and Knowledge and attitude towards Cervical Cancer and Pap Smear Questionnaire. The mean percentage score (mean± SD) was calculated, with higher scores showed better outcomes. Multiple linear regression was used to measure the relationship of independent variables with attitude towards Pap smear.
RESULTS: A total of 417 participants were recruited with a mean age of 24.9 ± 3.56 years old. Prevalence of awareness of cervical cancer was 91.6% (n=382, 95% CI: 89.0%, 94.2%) and mean percentage score was 74.7%±7.6. Prevalence of awareness of Pap smear was 59.0% (n=246, 95% CI: 54.2%, 63.8%) and mean percentage score was 80.2% ± 6.5. The health literacy mean score was 13.3±3.6, with minimum score 0 and maximum score 16. The mean percentage score of attitudes towards Pap smear was 64.8%±9.3. Multiple linear regression analysis demonstrated significant relationship between health literacy (p=0.047) and knowledge of Pap smear (p<0.001) with attitude towards Pap smear.
CONCLUSION: A higher health literacy with high knowledge of Pap smear improves the attitude towards Pap smear. Pre-marital course is an opportunistic platform to disseminate information to improve health literacy and knowledge of cervical cancer and Pap smear screening.

Matched MeSH terms: Vaginal Smears/psychology*
A systematic review of the effectiveness of health education interventions to increase cervical cancer screening uptake

Agide FD, Garmaroudi G, Sadeghi R, Shakibazadeh E, Yaseri M, Koricha ZB, et al.

Eur J Public Health, 2018 12 01;28(6):1156-1162.
PMID: 30346504 DOI: 10.1093/eurpub/cky197

Background: Cervical cancer screening reduced cancer morbidity and mortality in developed countries. Health education interventions are expected to enhance screening and early detection. Thus, this review is aimed to see the effectiveness of the interventions in cervical cancer screening uptake.
Methods: Online databases (PubMed/MEDLINE/PubMed Central, EMBASE, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Web of Science and Google Scholar) were searched for all published eligible research articles in the past 12 years (as of January 2005-2017). A total of 17 research articles were included. The interventions were classified as 'individual level', 'community level' and 'cultural sensitive educations' which contains various interventions in their content as compared with usual care. A quality coding system was assessed using Cochrane checklists and rated by each researcher independently and the average score was given accordingly. This study was registered in PROSPERO 2017: CRD42017060405.
Results: The review dovetailed 17 studies. Ten studies (58.82%) were conducted in the United States, three in Iran (17.65%) and one each in Malaysia, China, Cameroon and Nigeria (23.53%). Almost all levels of the interventions boosted the screening uptake and the Pap test. However, the individual level health education interventions were prioritized in many of the studies.
Conclusion: The review indicated that health education interventions have immense contributions in boosting the screening uptake. However, the effectiveness varies with study setting, populations and the way of delivery. Therefore, the limited quality of the studies indicated that further research is required to develop a simple and effective intervention to boost cervical cancer screening uptake.

Matched MeSH terms: Vaginal Smears/statistics & numerical data
Screening for gonorrhea in a prenatal clinic in Southeast Asia

Goh TH, Ngeow YF, Teoh SK

Sex Transm Dis, 1981 4 1;8(2):67-9.
PMID: 7256495

Screening by culture of endocervical specimens revealed four cases of gonorrhea among 744 pregnant women attending the prenatal clinic at the University Hospital in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The observed prevalence of gonorrhea (0.54%) in pregnant women is similar to that in Great Britain (0.2-0.7%), but lower than the prevalences reported for North America (2.5-7.5%) and Thailand (11.9%). The results indicate that routine screening of pregnant women attending prenatal clinics in Malaysia would aid in the control of gonorrhea in that country.

Matched MeSH terms: Vaginal Smears
The prevalence and significance of high-risk human papillomavirus DNA test in southern Malaysia and Singapore

Tay SK, Tay YK

Aust N Z J Obstet Gynaecol, 2009 Jun;49(3):323-7.
PMID: 19566569 DOI: 10.1111/j.1479-828X.2009.01000.x

To investigate the prevalence of high-risk human papillomavirus (HPV) and its associated cytological abnormalities among women attending cervical screening clinics in southern Malaysia and Singapore.

Matched MeSH terms: Vaginal Smears
Fulltext Factors influencing the uptake of pap smear screening among malay women in a public university in Kuala Lumpur - a pilot study

Moy FM, Lim CH, Tan CJA, Tay SY

Malaysian Journal of Public Health Medicine, 2007;7(2):23-28.
MyJurnal

Cancer of the cervix is the second most common cancer among Malaysian women. Pap smear screening can detect precursors of cervical cancer. This paper attempts to determine the factors that influence the uptake of Pap smear screening. This was a cross sectional study with 112 Malay women recruited from a public university. A questionnaire enquiring sociademographic characteristics and health seeking behaviour based on the Health Belief Model was modified, translated and pre·tested. Testeretest reliability was also conducted. The mean age of the participants was 35.8 + 9.1 years. Majority was married and had at least secondary education. Only 62% of them had ever undergone Pap smear screening. Multiple logistic regression analysis showed women who were married or divorced (OR: 50.79, 95% C1: 4.33; 596.36), older age (OR: 1.12, 95% CI: 1.03; 1.22) or perceived higher benefits of Pap smear (OR; 4.80, 95% CI: 1.14; 20.15)
were more lilcely to have undergone Pap smear screening. Measures in reducing barriers and educating the public on the benefits of Pap smear are strongly recommended.

Matched MeSH terms: Vaginal Smears
Fulltext Evaluation of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method and hybrid capture II (HCII) assay for the detection of human papillomavirus in cervical scrapings

Saini R, Shen TH, Othman NH, Santhanam J, Othman N, Tang TH

Med J Malaysia, 2007 Aug;62(3):206-9.
PMID: 18246908 MyJurnal

In order to investigate the reliability of detecting HPV DNA in cervical smears, we compared the performance of nested MY/GP PCR and FDA approved-Hybrid Capture II (HCII) using clinical cervical scrapings from 40 patients. It was found that PCR was more sensitive (81.8%) in comparison to HCII (36.4%) in detecting HPV although specificity of HCII was much higher (96.6%) than PCR (58.6%). The Negative Predictive Value (NPV) of both the techniques were quite similar but Positive Predictive Value (PPV) of HCII was much higher (80.0%) compared to PCR (42.9%). While the HCII method showed good specificity for HPV detection, its lack of sensitivity as compared to PCR may be a drawback for diagnostic use.

Matched MeSH terms: Vaginal Smears*

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