Editing Colposcopy (section)

==Interpretation==
[[File:Cervix quadrants and directions.svg|thumb|Locations of colposcopy findings can be described in terms of quadrants, or corresponding to a [[clock face]] when the subject is in [[supine position]].]]

One model for scoring colposcopy findings is the ''Swede Score'', which assigns a score between 0 and 2 for five different parameters, based on what is visible during the colposcopy, as given in table below:

{|class="wikitable plainrowheaders"
|+Swede Score for interpreting colposcopy findings<ref name=principles2011>{{cite book |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=Principles and Practice of Colposcopy |publisher=JP Medical Ltd |date=2011 |isbn=9789350250945 |page=91 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=quotjPrR2WwC&pg=PA91 |url-status=dead |access-date=2017-08-30 |archive-date=2023-07-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230709100203/https://books.google.com/books?id=quotjPrR2WwC&pg=PA91 }}</ref>
! scope="col" rowspan=2 | Parameter
! scope="col" colspan=3 | Score
|-
! scope="col" | 0
! scope="col" | 1
! scope="col" | 2
|-
! scope="row" | Uptake of<br> [[acetic acid]]
| 0 or transparent || Shady, milky || Distinct, stearin-like
|-
! scope="row" | Margins and surface
| 0 or diffuse || Sharp, but irregular, jagged, "geographical" satellites || Sharp and even, difference in surface level such as "cutting"
|-
! scope="row" | Vessels
| Fine, regular || Absent || Coarse or atypical
|-
! scope="row" | Lesion size
| <{{spaces|thin}}5&nbsp;mm || 5–15&nbsp;mm or spanning 2 quadrants || >{{spaces|thin}}15&nbsp;mm or spanning 3–4 quadrants or endocervically undefined
|-
! scope="row" | [[Iodine]] staining
| Brown || Faintly or patchy yellow || Distinct yellow
|}

The total Swede Score ranges between 0 and 10. A score of 5 or above is reported to identify all potential high-grade lesions (HGL) and 8 or above to have a 90% chance of being a HGL.<ref name=principles2011/> A score below 5 does not require biopsy because of low risk of cancer, a score from 5 to 7 requires biopsy, and a score 8 or above does not require biopsy because it is likely more efficient to intervene directly (e.g., by excision).<ref name=principles2011/>