ArticleBiomedica : revista del Instituto Nacional de Salud2026
Evaluation of the quality of vaginal discharge smear analysis reporting in five clinical laboratories in the Colombian Pacific Region
Article in Biomedica : revista del Instituto Nacional de Salud, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
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Abstract
Introduction: Vaginal flow analysis plays a key role in clinical diagnosis and medical decision-making. Standardizing report formats remains essential to ensure diagnostic reliability. Objective: To assess the quality of vaginal smear reporting in five clinical laboratories located in Colombia’s Pacific region. Materials and methods: This descriptive, retrospective study examined records from five laboratories (three public, two private) across three cities in the Colombian Pacific region. The evaluation followed the BACOVA ERIGE guidelines to assess the completeness of the analytical components. Researchers used XLSTAT Premium, version 2024, to compute means, standard deviations, proportions, and ratios. They applied the chi square test to compare reporting compliance across laboratories and used multiple correspondence analysis and discriminant analysis to identify reporting patterns and inter-city differences. Results: The study analyzed 1260 records from women aged 18 to 60 years. Of these, 56.8% were pregnant, and 57% were affiliated to the subsidized healthcare system. Compliance with the BACOVA ERIGE guidelines was higher in Ipiales (54.44%) compared to Cali (24.21%) and Quibdó (21.35%) (c², p = 0.047). The multiple correspondence analysis and discriminant analysis identified three distinct reporting profiles by city. Conclusions: The variability in vaginal smear reports underscores the need to standardize post-analytical procedures. Unifying technical criteria among laboratories would improve the diagnostic quality of vaginal flora imbalance and enhance clinical decision-making.
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