Cervical dysplasia, cervicitis and inflammatory bowel disease – is there a relationship? (Literature review)
Authors: Khashcha I.I. , Sozanska M.A. , Mitsoda R.M. , Korchynska O.O. 
Published: June 2024

The state of health of the female population of Ukraine is of particular concern due to the year-by-year increase in the frequency of precancerous and oncological diseases of the reproductive organs. Benign and precancerous pathologies of the cervix occupy an important place among gynecological diseases.The objective of this article is to review foreign literature and domestic data sources for assessment the risk of dysplasia and cervical cancer in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and cervicitis.Early onset of sexual life and a large number of sexual partners are factors that increase the risk of contracting the human papillomavirus (HPV) and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs). Trauma to the cervical epithelium – mechanical one or caused by an STI – can cause HPV to enter the basal layer of the cervical epithelium. Cervical cancer (CC) is preceded by HPV lesions of the cervical epithelium, including low-grade and high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions, which are usually diagnosed in women of reproductive age.Cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) is characterized by impaired maturation and differentiation of cells of the multilayered squamous epithelium and is the most frequent form of morphological precancer of the cervix. Up to 90% of CIN are localized at the border of single-layered cylindrical and multilayered flat epithelium (transformation zone). CIN of various degrees is a precancerous disease in which the index of malignancy (oncological transformation) can reach 50%.The clinical course of dysplastic changes in CIN is asymptomatic, and the patients have no specific complaints. During the infectious process in the vagina, CIN can be accompanied by an increase in the amount of vaginal discharges in the form of mucus or milky secretions. Therefore, in modern conditions timely diagnosis, effective treatment and prevention of precancerous processes, which include CIN of the cervix, is one of the important tasks of a gynecologist. Women of perimenopausal age, who are traditionally classified as a risk group, deserve special attention.Today, there is information in the literature that diseases of a multifactorial nature make up 90–95% of all diseases, which also includes CIN. Despite extensive research efforts and advances in screening and prevention strategies, CC remains an unsolved public health challenge, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. Every year in the world, more than half a million women are diagnosed with CC.The world scientific community pays great attention to the study of epidemiology, pathogenesis, treatment and development of methods of prevention of neoplastic processes in general and CC in particular. So far, this has not been thoroughly studied, and there are no large studies that take into account a variety of potential factors. Understanding the risk factors for the development of CC in patients with IBD and cervicitis may help develop screening and prevention strategies and ultimately improve treatment outcomes.