Table 1. 2011 International Federation of Cervical Pathology and Colposcopy (IFCPC) colposcopic terminology of the cervix.
| Section | Pattern | |
|---|---|---|
| General assessment | Adequate or inadequate for the reason (i.e., cervix obscured by inflammation, bleeding, scar). | |
| Squamocolumnar junction visibility: completely visible, partially visible, not visible. | ||
| Transformation zone types 1, 2, 3. | ||
| Normal colposcopic finding | Original squamous epithelium: mature, atrophic. | |
| Columnar epithelium; ectopy/ectropion. | ||
| Metaplastic squamous epithelium; nabothian cysts; crypt (gland) openings. | ||
| Deciduosis in pregnancy. | ||
| Abnormal colposcopic finding | ||
| General principles | Location of the lesion: inside or outside the transformation zone; location of the lesion by clock position. | |
| Size of the lesion: number of cervical quadrants the lesion covers. | ||
| Size of the lesion as percentage of cervix. | ||
| Grade 1 (minor) | Fine mosaic; fine punctation; thin acetowhite epithelium; irregular, geographic border. | |
| Grade 2 (major) | Sharp border; inner border sign; ridge sign; dense acetowhite epithelium; coarse mosaic; coarse punctuation; rapid appearance of acetowhitening; cuffed crypt (gland) openings. | |
| Nonspecific | Leukoplakia (keratosis, hyperkeratosis), erosion Lugol's staining (Schiller's test): stained or non-stained. | |
| Suspicious for invasion | Atypical vessels. | |
| Additional signs: fragile vessels, irregular surface, exophytic lesion, necrosis, ulceration (necrotic), tumor or gross neoplasm. | ||
| Miscellaneous findings | Congenital transformation zone, condyloma, polyp (ectocervical or endocervical), inflammation, stenosis, congenital anomaly, posttreatment consequence, endometriosis. | |
Modified from "2011 IFCPC Nomenclature", by the International Federation of Cervical Pathology and Colposcopy, 2011, available from: http://www.ifcpc.org/en/healthcare-professionals/resource-material/2011-ifcpc-nomenclature (copyright 2011 by the International Federation of Cervical Pathology and Colposcopy).