Okay, this is the 3rd time I've posted today, but I have a ton of ?'s and you guys seem to give the best--and most understandable--answers. I had not only a thin-prep pap but also the papsure test done. The thin-prep came back fine, but the papsure did not. As a result, I had a colposcopy done yesterday. My gyn saw what he called a lesion (my hubby said the doc said it was a black and white area) and did a biopsy. Before I left the office he told me he thought it was dyplasia and set me up for LEEP in 2 weeks. I have to call next Thur for the results of the biopsy (then the LEEP is that Mon). Anyway, when is a LEEP not necessary? I've read some stuff saying that if it's mild dysplsia to wait, repeat the pap in abut 6 months, and go from there. I definately don't want to have this procedure done if it's not totally necessary. Can a gyn tell just by looking through the microscope if you have dysplasia? Can something other than dysplasia cause a cervical lesion? Is it weird that the papsure showed something but the thin prep did not? I have been getting regular paps for the last 9 years and they have all been fine; however, I did not have one last year because I was pregnant. I also elected not to have one when I first went in with the pregnancy (which means my last pap was July of 2001) because I didn't want to risk anything happening (I've had 2 miscarriages and 2 children--paps w/ the mc, no paps with my kids). I had my baby this past Nov. Could the lesion be something left over (although I did have a c-section)? Thank you so much--you have been so helpful.

I've also had conflicting results with a traditional pap smear and thin-prep. The traditional pap (not sure what this is called) turned up LGSIL, which is basically the equivillent to CIN I (it's sometimes lumped into the same category as ASCUS, but it's a bit more specific). A thin-prep pap a few weeks later turned up nothing. I had a colposcopy in the meantime which only confirmed LGSIL, or at least that's what my gyno told me. During the colpo, my gyno said that my cervix looks nice and healthy, but he biopsied three areas and only one came back abnormal. He gave me the 6 months-to-a-year option for a return check-up. He said it's entirely possible that within the next year, the LGSIL will vanish. His statistic was somewhere in the order of 80-85% of LGSIL cases revert to normal within a year. That's a great statistic, but the left over 15-20% is also a pretty big chunk of people!

Anyway, I'm not sure if anyone other than another gyno could answer your question about being able to tell whether or not you have severe dysplasia. I know that my gyno said my cervix looked nice and healthy as he was doing the biopsy, and it still came back abnormal, so sometimes it's not perfectly obvious just by looking at it. When you go in for a colpo, they will wash your cervix with a vinegar solution and then shine a special kind of light on it which will cause the abnormal cells to fluoress. The procedure is a lot like a pelvic exam, except they have a tool that takes small bits of your cervix for biopsy (they numb your cervix first before taking samples). It's not particularly painless, but it's also not that bad.

As for your other questions, I'm also not sure if I can answer those, either. But definitely get the biopsy done for peace of mind, if nothing else.

I'm surprised to hear your doctor is pushing you into a leep like that. Especially given your history.

If you have been married for nine years and there has been NO infidelity there is a great chance that its nothing, or something not very aggressive.

Also, Women in their late 30s & 40s have abnormal paps for hormonal reasons.

If I were you I would not jump into a leep until I knows its cervial dysplasia caused by HPV & that my body can't fight off itself.

Why did you have 2 different kinds of paps?? Did the first or second pap come back abnormal? Repeat paps should not be done within 3 months of the last pap.

when I was pregnant with my last child (10 years ago)I had a pap test come back abnormal during my 4th month of pregnancy....they sent me to a specialist as I had abnormal cells. The specialist said that out of a rating of 1 to 4 that my abnormal cells rated a 1 which is mild (4 is cancer)and that they would keep an eye on it's progress...I had a very healthy pregnancy and delivery and when I went for my pap smear for after having the baby I then rated a number 3. I thought that it took years to progress that fast. I was in the severe stage which meant they were not sure if it was cancer but it could be. I had the loop surgery done and the test result came back negative.
After the surgery I went for my routine check-ups and I was fine until about 3 years later....my pap test started coming back abnormal again , actually for the next 5 1/2 years having to go for pap test every 6 months (UGH!!!!)every pap test came back abnormal but they said just to keep going for pap test every 6 months.....well a year and a half ago out of the blue I finally received a normal test....I was soooo happy..I don't understand why after all of those years having abnormal tests that it would finally come back normal.....however....I have not been back...I am going to make an appointment to go really soon.
Oh I meant to mention the reason that the dr. told me that I couldn't have lazer is because the abnormal cells had spread upward in my cervix and that with lazer they couldn't get at it all so they had to use the wire loop to cut it out.
Hope this helped you out , take care
bee