Ladies: self STI test & self smear. Thoughts?

Hi ladies,

do ladies still prefer to go to the doc or gyno to have their smears or swabs for STI?

I believe that in the UK the woman now is handed a kit and told to go to the toilet.. with that in mind do any of the ladies prefer to be diagnosed that way, similarly with the current pandemic and the lack of uptake on the smears i know home self sampling has been suggested.

would ladies prefer to do a DIY swab or still prefer to go to the doc or nurse etc..

regards

EJ

I have heard of the idea of it, I think it was tried out in 2019 but I do not know what everybody is doing now, I have not talked to anybody who really knows. I go private and the gynecologist I see, he takes my smears and if it is still going to be ok I think I will just keep doing that.

Maybe I could do my own and my husband could do them for me but I have more of an exam anyway so the cervical screening is just a part of it really.

I very much doubt if a woman could do a DIY cervical smear test herself with any accuracy. Cells have to be taken from the cervix with a brush or spatula and then transferred to a slide or into a solution and then sent to the lab, it's not like using a simple swab or checking a urine sample with a colour code dipper. How would a woman find her own cervix with the speculum and then take the sample from the correct location, and in a toilet?Cervical smear tests are being done at GP's surgery's in the normal way.

A simple STI test is different, DIY test kits for Chlamydia are sometimes given out at discos. But nearly all STI checks are done at sexual heath clinics by self referral and involve blood tests for HIV and all sorts of tests, docs or gynos don't routinely screen for STIs.

Thanks @Amethyst & @Dr_Philip

its not just responses from the UK. id be interested in the thought all the ladies around the world.

secondly i was refering to this beeb article- Urine test to end 'smear fear' Apr 2019 (if anyone was just search for it.)

I've never had a need to have STI screening, but I believe that most of those screenings are done with blood tests, not from urinalysis. Self-labwork isn't the easiest thing to do if you need more than a drop of blood, say, from a finger stick.

I also second what has been already said regarding the idea of a self-PAP smear. It isn't anything a gal can blindly stick a swab up into her vagina and obtain - the swab takes cells specifically from the cervical os, and that needs to be visualized through use of a speculum. I don't see a way around that, not to have that done through a self-exam.

In addition, I think that we are trying to rely too much on self-healthcare. The vast majority of people do not have a medical background or medical training. Trying to put healthcare procedures into the hands of untrained people runs high risks of tests being done incorrectly or not at all. If your body was a car, would you really want a six year old replacing the engine, or someone who knows what they're doing?

Are not available there and still must to check up by gyno. Eventually pap smear can be taken by midwife. However, even you get diagnosis eg. That you had any illness (or need through check up by bad result of pap) are made by doctor. He also are prescribed medicines

Thanks for the replies

A new article published on the BBC website. Talks about a trial for home smear tests to be carried out in similar fashion to the Sti screening.

Will try and get a link in later.

Your thoughts please thanks

I saw that too. For some reason the link won't copy and paste. Search BBC news web site and open the UK page to find the article.

Https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-56168170

It appears to be a pre-smear test swab for HPV. If the test is positive then the woman goes to her doctors for a regular smear test. But if the test is negative does that give the woman comfort that all is well and she doesn't need to bother with a regular smear test, or is this aimed at women who wouldn't normally attend for a test anyway? I know back in 2019 that attendance was down to around 72%, younger women in particular seemed more reluctant to have it done, so perhaps this is aimed at them.

Looking at the article, and from my understanding of the report on BBC Breakfast this morning, this trial is aimed at women who are over 18 months overdue their smear test. Will be interesting t see what the outcome of the trial is, and if rolled out more widely, what the take-up will be.