Well, most women would probably agree, the pap smear is not fun and many force themselves to go see the doctor every year for this dreaded test.  It would seem, however, that there may be some relief for women out there.  The most recent guidelines recommend less frequent routine pap smear screenings.

Please refer to the previous posts on the annual pap smear and HPV vaccination.  This newer recommendations will have women doing less frequent pap smears unless they have other known risks.

Per the new guidelines,

  1. No pap smears until age 21.  This is regardless of sexual activity status.  This is probably a relief for many teens.  I would say that we catch a lot of undiagnosed sexually transmitted infections such as Chlamydia on these paps.  So, if we are not doing the paps, and the patients are not coming in to get STD screenings, perhaps a lot more cases of Chlamydia will go untreated.
  2. Once you start having paps, then it is only every other year.
  3. After age 30, then every 3 years.
  4. If you’ve had a hysterectomy for any reason other than cancer, then you shouldn’t need a pap.
  5. After age 65 and having had 3 consecutive normal tests, you can stop having paps too.

Keep in mind that all of the above refer to the low risk patient for routine screening.  If you’ve had problems with your paps previously or any history of cervical cancer, this doesn’t apply to you.  You’ll need to discuss this over with your doctor.  Your doctor can then make a specific recommendation based on your medical history and risks.

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