COLPOSCOPY? vaginal? side effects for IC??

[bluetou]

I am sorry if this is in the wrong spot...but I am wondering if anyone has had a colposcopy? and if so did it flare your IC? cause problems with VV?

I have an appointment to have this done, due to two abnormal paps.

I did read that they use ACETIC ACID (applied to the cervix)....plus they will also use IODINE applied to the cervix to highlight areas of abnormalities.

They will also do a biopsy....

ALL this is freaking me out due the possibility of flaring?? I have been feeling so good and am scared it is all going to crash down on me with this procedure??

Sorry if this is in the wrong spot, as I did not know where it was to go?

Any advice?

Peace
Blue
:pray:

[glassd18]

Hi Blue,

I had a colpo done when I was 17 due to a bad pap. I can't say what it will do to you regarding IC as it was so many years ago for me. What I can tell you is that they snip a little biopsy of the cervical area and then test it to see if there are bad cells. I ended up having dysplasia, and had to have cryotherapy (freezing) of the cells twice as it didn't remove it entirely the first time. I had to go every 4 months for a colpo afterwards, and then every 6 months, and than finally annual check, but now I only go for regular pap smears as they successfully removed the bad cells. I often wondered if that caused my bladder problems, but I don't really knows for sure. It would be purely speculation. Anytime they are poking around down there it can upset the balance, but for your sake I hope not. Good luck, and please let me know how it goes. Feel free to PM me or if you want to talk I can give you my number.

[Briza]

I don't know what colposcopy??is but same as glassd I had abnormal PAP about 20 yrs ago and so then biopsy of cervix was taken and then I had crhyotherapy/chryosurgery in office to freeze off the mild dyplasia cells that were discovered from the biopsy. One freeze treatment seemed to do the trick for me and I have had annual PAPs since and never another problem:)

I did not have IC at the time but I DID have frequent vaginal issues (bv and yeast and probably undxd VV) but biopsy was pretty much pain free and I am one who has low tolerance and long memory for pain so believe me I would remember if it was painful! Seems cervix does not have many pain nerves and from what I remember the tiny biopsy that was taken just felt like a pressure/tugging feeling similar to how it feels when you tug on earlobe gently...anyway that is how the the cervical biopsy felt for me.

I don't remember if acetic acid or iodine was applied...at the time I was not so interested in what goes on down there lol...but since IC and VV I have had iodine applied to my vulvar area before cathing and I did not react to that, and I do have numerous sensitivities down there! The only problem I had with the freeze treatment was that I developed a BAD and smelly infection that took a couple of months on antibiotics to get over. No pain or burning or anything just bad and smelly. That was not good. I think possibly that bad infection is the reason I have one scar tissue-blocked fallopian tube...possibly infection created PID as PID is often a cause of scar tissue in fallopian tubes. So well, as much as I hate taking antibiotics if I had to have this freeze treatment ever again I would for me want antibiotics right from the start. Infections such as mine probably rare but for me better safe than sorry. Anyway, hopefully I will never be in that situation again and all of my PAPs have been normal since for the past 20 yrs so hopefully I am out of the woods with that:bow:

[glassd18]

Briza you and I had the exact same issue except for me it took one more freezing. I remember the tugging feeling. Actually maybe you could compare it to a pap smear exam. That was 27 years ago for me!!!! Anyhow the colpo is actually the visual exam with an instrument that sees the cervix very well, and they take a biopsy at the same time. Here is the wikipedia page for it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colposcopy

[BT2008]

Hey Bluetou,

I have to have colposcopies every six-months due to abnormal paps. I have HPV that showed up in early 2007 that has caused my paps to get progressively worse over the past 2-years. I am currently at CIN II--which registers as moderate dysplasia.

I had already had three colposcopies previous to my IC, and they did not hurt one bit! They were over in a matter of seconds--all they do is "look" inside the vagina with a special microscope.

Soon after being hit with IC, I had a scheduled colposcopy and like the others, it did not not make me hurt any worse than I was already hurting at the time. So, just a colposcopy alone does not bother my IC.

The one I had this past December, however, was a totally different story! But--my ongoing flare was very severe at the time, and--she found 2 spots she removed by LEEP. She also had to do an area biopsy.

And--yes hon--I won't lie to you--that did hurt, pretty bad, especially in the moment as she was doing it, as well as increasingly getting worse over the following several hours. It also made my PFD flare pretty bad as well.:(

BUT--if you are not in a flare at the present moment, it may not hurt too bad. I hope not--because it is VERY important for you to go ahead and have the colpo and biopsy done because of the risk of those pre-cancerous cells going malignant at any time.

My GYN knows about my severe IC, so she was as gentle as she could be (of course, the fact that I was crying while she was doing it probably signaled to her to be extra careful as well!)

So, I am sorry that you have to go through that and take the chance that it may make you flare, but it is essential that you put on your "Woman's Bravery Hat" and just get it over with. I don't know if just having a biopsy will hurt, because I feel sure that it was primarily the LEEP procedure that hurt, but certainly not the colposcopy itself.

If you have any pain meds on hand for PRN pain, you might want to take one either right before the biopsy or certainly afterward, if needed.

Here's a (((BIG HUG))) beforehand!!

~Beth