In 2010, The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) updated their Pap Smear screening recommendation to now start at age 21 and encouraged use of the cervical cancer vaccine before age 26. Cervical cancer rates have fallen drastically in the United States due to the widespread use of the Pap Smear to detect early cervical abnormalities (ACOG, 2009). However, a literature review supports that with healthy immune systems, women 21 and younger commonly clear cervical abnormalities. A review of 277 charts of female adolescents seen in 2011 was completed at a federally funded adolescent program in an urban center of Rochester, NY. Of these 277 females, 29 (10.5%) of them had a Pap Smear. Further exploration of data indicated high compliance of this practice with current ACOG guidelines as well as vaccination practices.
| Presenter: | Michelle Smith (Undergraduate Student) |
|---|---|
| Topic: | Nursing |
| Location: | 214 Hartwell |
| Time: | 9 am Session I |
