Effect of professional society recommendations on women's desire for a routine pelvic examination

American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology
George F SawayaMiriam Kuppermann

Abstract

The American College of Physicians strongly recommends against performing pelvic examinations in asymptomatic, nonpregnant women, citing evidence of harm (false-positive testing, unnecessary surgery) and no evidence of benefit. In contrast, the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommends pelvic examinations in asymptomatic women beginning at age 21 years, citing expert opinion. We sought to evaluate if providing women with professional societies' conflicting statements about pelvic examinations (recommendations and rationales) would influence their desire for a routine examination. We recruited 452 women ages 21-65 years from 2 women's clinics to participate in a 50-minute face-to-face interview about cervical cancer screening that included a 2-phase study related to pelvic examinations. In the first phase, 262 women were asked about their desire for the examination without being provided information about professional societies' recommendations. In the second phase, 190 women were randomized to review summaries of the American College of Physicians or American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists statement followed by an interview. First-phase participants served as the referent: 79% (208/262) indica...Continue Reading

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