His and Her Health

My Dr's office just called and informed me that my pap will have to be repeated. They found some red blood cells present in the specimin. My last period was on 3/6 and my appt was last week on 3/23. They said they are just being very thorough. I have to come in 2 wks after my next period for the repeat. <BR> <BR>Should I be concerned? What could possibly be wrong? I'm nervous.<BR>

Paps can come back with results that make a repeat test necessary for many reasons: not done correctly, sample contamination, done too close to your period, yeast or other infection, and a variety of other things that include more serious scenarios.<P>It's normal to be nervous, but just know that often paps are "abnormal" for totally innocent reasons. When you go for your repeat, don't have intervaginal penetration of any kind for at least 24 hours--no douching, no tampons, no sex toys, no manual stimulation or intercourse. Some doctor's offices forget to tell patients this, so thought I'd bring it up. Make sure you tell your doctor all the medications you are on, and list the last date of your period. <P>Some of the reasons paps come back abnormal are things that need to be treated, but aren't of dire consequence: infections, etc. Some things, of course, are serious. These conditions are far more rare than what I've listed above; but, they're possibilities. For now, try to remember that it could be pretty much anything--and it could be absolutely nothing at all. <P>Keep us updated, and we're here for you. *Big hugs*