Cytology of condyloma of the uterine cervix.

The presence of the koilocyte as well as other dyskeratotic cells in the routine gynecologic smear is often the earliest indication of an abnormality in an otherwise asymptomatic patient. These cells have now been shown to be infected by the human papillomavirus and for many women represent a transient event. The term condyloma has become associated with them and, by inference, a benign clinical course. But these cells should not be regarded solely as a manifestation of a viral infection, for nearly half are associated with a significant precancerous lesion and, in a few, invasive carcinoma. The behavior of the so-called condyloma of the cervix is unlike that of condyloma acuminatum of the external anogenital area.