Rational use of cryosurgery and cold knife conization for treatment of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia.

In recent years a variety of conservative treatment modalities are being used to remove Cervical Intraepithelial Neoplasia (CIN). A series of 568 cases of patients affected by CIN, detected in our Department over a period of 10 years and treated following a balanced use of colposcopy guided cryosurgery and cold knife conization, has been reviewed. One-hundred-fifty-three patients, 111 with CIN 1 and 42 with CIN 2, were treated by the use of a nitrous oxide cryoprobe. The remaining 415 patients underwent cold knife conization, under general anesthesia and hospitalization. Routine follow-up for all cases included cytology, colposcopy and aimed biopsy when required. Cryotherapy had a success-rate of 90.1% (CIN 1-CIN 2 only) and "complete" conization 94.6% (included CIN 3 cases). Complications of conization, such as late haemorrhage and cervical stenosis, were more frequent with the "open technique" than the "suture technique". Nine pregnancies after cryotherapy and 34 after conization have been reported, no significant differences were noted in the pregnancy outcome following either treatment.