Cervical dysplasia is also known as cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN). The term ‘dys’ refers to abnormal and ‘plasia’ refers to growth.
It is a condition where the squamous cells on the surface of the cervix grow abnormally and changes into pre-cancerous cells.
In other words, it refers to the presence of abnormal, pre-cancerous cells on the surface of the cervix, the lower part of the uterus that opens into the vagina.
These changes in the cells of the cervix are categorized as mild (CIN-I), moderate (CIN-II), or severe (CIN-II or carcinoma-in-situ).
There are two types of cervical dysplasia: LGSIL and HGSIL.
The first type of cervical dysplasia is LGSIL. It stands for low-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions. Generally, the abnormal cells that are present in low-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions will recover on their own and becomes normal within two years.
On the other hand, HGSIL stands for high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions. The abnormal cells in high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions can develop into cervical cancer if left untreated. It usually takes more than ten years to develop into cancer.
Remember that the greater the abnormality of cells, the higher the chances of developing cervical cancer (Cervical Cancer Vaccines) .
It is found that, in the United States, one million cervical dysplasia cases are raising every year. Cervical dysplasia can develop at any stage of your life but it occurs mostly in reproductive age between 25-35 years.
Cervical dysplasia can develop easily whenever you have an unprotected sexual activity; has more than one sexual partner, or your sexual partner have a history of sexually transmitted diseases: HPV and HIV, insufficient folic acid substances in the diet, or due to heavy smoking.
Sexual activities without any protection or with multiple sex partners or having sexual contact with a partner who has had multiple sex partners are related to cervical dysplasia.
Sexual activities with any of these conditions have an increased risk of developing sexual transmitted diseases: HPV and HIV, which can lead to cervical dysplasia.
It is found that eighty to ninety percent of cervical dysplasia cases are strongly associated with HPV infection. According to NIH Consensus Conference on Cancer of the Cervix and the World Health Organization (WHO), it is found that several types of HPV viruses cause cervical cancer.
With HIV virus, you have higher chances of developing cervical dysplasia. The chances increase with the decrease of CD4 cells in the body. On the other hand, the chemicals of tobacco (nicotine and cotinine) may cause chances in the cells of the cervix. Thus, leading to cervical dysplasia.
It has been proven that some vitamins, such as folic acid, play an essential role in maintaining cervix in a good condition. A healthy diet with all nutrients can help your immune system to fight against the foreign organisms of the body.
Usually cervical dysplasia doesn’t cause any symptoms. Rarely, it causes bleeding after sexual intercourse. A pap test can help determine the condition in order to have proper treatment (Pap Test for detecting Cervical Cancer).
