Pelvic exam and Pap smear

The pelvic exam involves inserting an instrument called a speculum gently into the vagina to hold open the vaginal walls, making it easier to inspect your cervix and vagina for signs of discharge, bleeding or other abnormalities.

A Pap smear will be performed. It's a simple relatively painless test in which sample cells from the surface of the cervix are obtained with a swab or brush. This sample is then placed on a slide and sent to a laboratory for analysis.

Although the Pap smear is a good test, it isn't perfect. Pap tests sometimes do not find cervical abnormalities that actually exist - but regular screening can help you and your doctor reduce these 'false-negative' results.