Evidence map›Paper›PMID 32183830›Full record

ArticleBMC women's health2020

Feasibility of endometrial sampling by vaginal tampons in women with Lynch syndrome.

Jorien M Woolderink, Geertruida H De Bock, Bettien M van Hemel, Erwin Geuken, Harry Hollema, Naomi Werner, Marian J Mourits

Open access · goldAbstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in BMC women's health, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
0.3field-weighted citation impact, top 45% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 8 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Review
  3. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Jorien M WoolderinkDepartment of Gynecology, Martini Hospital, Groningen, the Netherlands. j.woolderink@mzh.nl.
Geertruida H De BockDepartment of Epidemiology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands.
Bettien M van HemelDepartment of Pathology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands.
Erwin GeukenDepartment of Pathology, Martini Hospital, Groningen, the Netherlands.
Harry HollemaDepartment of Pathology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands.
Naomi WernerDepartment of Pathology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands.
Marian J MouritsDepartment of Gynecologic Oncology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, P.O. Box 30.001, 9700, RB, Groningen, the Netherlands.
University Medical Center Groningen · NLMartini Ziekenhuis · NL

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundEndometrial sampling for the surveillance of women with Lynch syndrome is an invasive and painful procedure. The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of a less invasive procedure of collecting vital cells by vaginal tampons.

methodsThis was a prospective feasibility study of women scheduled to undergo annual gynecological surveillance, including endometrial sampling. We included consecutive asymptomatic women with Lynch syndrome or first-degree relatives and asked them to insert a vaginal tampon 2-4 h before attending their outpatient appointment. Feasibility was evaluated by the following metrics: patient acceptance, pain intensity of each procedure (assessed by visual analog scale; range 0-10), and the presence of vital cells obtained by tampon-based or endometrial sampling methods. Two pathologists independently evaluated all samples.

resultsIn total, 25 of 32 approached women completed the tampon-based procedure, with 23 of these subsequently undergoing invasive endometrial sampling. The median visual analog scale scores for tampon use and invasive endometrial sampling were 0 (range, 0-10) and 5.5 (range, 1-10) (p < 0.001). None of the tampon samples analyzed by cytology showed endometrial cells, but they did contain vital squamous cells and granulocytes. By contrast, 18 (78%) of the invasive endometrial samples contained enough endometrial tissue for analysis. No endometrial abnormalities were found by endometrial sampling.

conclusionsTampon-based endometrial surveillance was a well-accepted and non-painful procedure, and although tampons contained vital cells, they did not provide endometrial cells. However, this study was limited to asymptomatic women with Lynch syndrome (no endometrial pathology), indicating that research is needed to evaluate whether the tampon method has any utility for endometrial surveillance in women with Lynch syndrome.

Indexed as

Menstrual Hygiene ProductsColorectal Neoplasms, Hereditary NonpolyposisEndometriumFeasibility StudiesFemaleHumansPregnancyProspective StudiesEndometrial cancerEndometrial samplingLynch syndromeSurveillanceTampons

Identifiers

PMID32183830
PMCPMC7079431
OpenAlexW3010917744

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.