Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2003 Feb;16(1):15-20.
doi: 10.1016/s1083-3188(02)00209-7.

Characteristics of a group of adolescents undergoing loop electrical excision procedure (LEEP)

Sally E Perlman  1 , Jaqueline N Lubianca, Jessica A Kahn
Affiliations

Characteristics of a group of adolescents undergoing loop electrical excision procedure (LEEP)

Sally E Perlman et al. J Pediatr Adolesc Gynecol. 2003 Feb.

Abstract

Study objective: To describe the sociodemographic characteristics of a cohort of adolescents undergoing loop electrosurgical excision procedure (LEEP) of the cervix, and to determine if LEEP is a safe and effective procedure for evaluation and treatment of high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (HSIL) of the cervix in adolescents.

Setting: Case series of all adolescents who underwent LEEP between 1995 and 1997 at Children's Hospital, Boston, MA.

Design: Medical and laboratory records were reviewed to assess baseline characteristics and the following outcomes: (1) LEEP pathology results, (2) postoperative complications, (3) pregnancy outcomes, (4) compliance with follow-up appointments, and (5) recurrence of disease over a 12- to 37-month period.

Participants: Thirty-five adolescents underwent LEEP. The mean age of the adolescents at the time of LEEP was 17.9 +/- 1.5 yrs.

Results: The mean interval between coitarche and LEEP was 3.69 +/- 2.09 yrs. On preoperative colposcopy, 28 (80%) had HSIL on biopsy, 3 (8.6%) had HSIL on Pap smear with a discordant biopsy demonstrating low-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion (LSIL), 1 (2.9%) had a persistent LSIL, 2 (5.6%) had diffuse LSIL with an unsatisfactory colposcopy, and 1 (2.9%) had a HSIL Pap smear with a normal biopsy. LEEP specimen histopathology results were: HSIL in 19 (54%), LSIL in 10 (29%), SIL difficult to grade in 3 (9%), and no residual disease in 3 (9.0%). Postoperative complications were bleeding in 2 (5.7%), pain in 1 (2.9%), vaginal discharge in 1 (2.9%), cervicitis in 3 (8.6%), and endometritis in 2 (5.7%). Fourteen pregnancies were diagnosed after LEEP; no spontaneous abortions occurred. Mean follow-up period was 21.1 +/- 9.4 months. Compliance with follow-up appointments was 51% in the first 12 months post-LEEP and 26% in the second 12 months post-LEEP. Of the 28 patients followed for 12 months or more, there was one recurrence of HSIL confirmed by colposcopy and biopsy.

Conclusions: Outcome and complications of LEEP in adolescent females are similar to those reported in larger series of adult women. LEEP appears to be a safe and effective procedure for the evaluation and treatment of HSIL of the cervix in adolescents, but additional long-term data are needed.

PubMed Disclaimer