Pros and cons of air-dried and conventional wet-fixed Pap smears: An institutional study

Abstract

Introduction: Wet-fixed smear study routinely used to identify several pre-cancerous and cancerous tumours. By contrasting cellular preservation and staining quality in rehydration smears with wet-fixed smears, the current study aims to establish the effects of rehydration on air-dried smears. Materials and Methods: One hundred paired samples are compared. Wet fixing was done in the first place. Air-dried samples are rehydrated for 30 s with regular saline and then placed in 95% ethanol for 30 min. Both smears will undergo screening, evaluation and grading for numerous cytomorphological factors after Pap staining. The 2014 Bethesda system was used to report the cervical smear results. Results: When evaluated for numerous cellular properties, statistically significant similarities can be seen between two groups, one with wet-fixed smears and the other with rehydrated air-dried smears. The results of the cytological diagnosis comparison between the two groups can be shown in the agreement. Rehydrated air-dried smear interpretation and staining quality are significantly superior to traditional wet smears. Conclusions: Rehydration air-dried techniques can be used instead of traditional wet fixation methods and are as effective when used alone or with traditional wet-fixed smears.

Keywords

• cervical cytology
• rehydration smears
• wet-fixed smears