If your healthcare team finds a suspicious area of cells during your colposcopy procedure, a sample of tissue can be collected for testing. A colposcopy is a procedure to check your cervix, the wall of your vagina and your vulva for signs of precancerous or cancerous tissue It may involve a biopsy. A colposcopy is a procedure to examine your cervix Learn about the procedure, cervical biopsy, purpose, preparation, risks, recovery, and what your results might indicate. Your healthcare provider uses colposcopy to view the opening to the uterus, called the cervix, and the vagina
Your provider uses an instrument with a magnifying lens and a light This is called a colposcope It magnifies the image many times. It is performed similarly to a pap smear but uses an illuminated magnifying instrument (colposcope) to look for cell changes, growths, and inflammation. Colposcopy is performed with the woman lying back, legs in stirrups, and buttocks at the lower edge of the table (a position known as the dorsal lithotomy position). Colposcopy inspects the surface of a woman's genital area, including the cervix, vagina, and vulva, using a light source and a binocular microscope, usually taken after an abnormal pap smear.
This specialized lighted microscope is used to closely examine the vulva, vagina and cervix for abnormal cells. Colposcopy is used to follow up abnormal cervical cancer screening tests (eg, pap test, human papillomavirus [hpv] testing) or abnormal areas seen on the cervix, vagina, or vulva.
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