Effects of ball cauterization following loop excision and follow-up colposcopy

Abstract Objective: To investigate whether central diathermy ball cauterization after loop excision affects satisfactory colposcopy at follow-up. Methods: One hundred one consecutive women with the squamocolumnar junction visible at the ectocervix scheduled for loop excision were assigned alternately into two groups. In group A, diathermy ball cauterization was applied to the entire crater following excision. In group B, cauterization was avoided in a 2–3-mm zone around the new os. The women were re-examined 4 months postoperatively by colposcopy and microcolpohysteroscopy with specific intention to identify the location of the squamocolumnar junction. The examiners performing colposcopy and microcolpohysteroscopy were not aware of each other’s interpretation, or of the method of cauterization used. Results: Follow-up colposcopy was satisfactory in 12 women in group A (24%) and 47 women in group B (92.2%) ( P P P P Conclusion: Diathermy ball cauterization at the new cervical os after loop excision results in a shift of the squamocolumnar junction toward the endocervical canal, and predisposes to cervical stenosis, thereby decreasing satisfactory colposcopy rates.