[Automated cytodiagnosis from the viewpoint in the clinical cytologist].

Automated prescreening means to replace visual prescreening by cytotechnologists by a machine. The aim is to reach a better diagnostic level by eliminating human failure. All machine positives whether true positive or false positives have to be examined visually (by cytotechnologists or cytopathologists). If there are many false positives the system will be highly uneconomic. From a clinical point of view the number of false negatives is crucial. The false negative rate may in no case be higher than that reached by cytotechnologists and medical cytologists, but should, if possible be lower. Yardstick for the validation of prescreening systems can only be the diagnostic level of well kept cytologic laboratories of conventional cytology. Systems which do not meet these requirements don't have the least chance of being applied in routine diagnostic cytology.