Cytological diagnosis of virus-infected cells in Papanicolaou smears and its application in clinical practice.

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Abstract
Cytopathic changes of herpes simplex virus, varicella-zoster virus, the human polyomaviruses and the trachoma agent can be recognized in smears prepared from a wide variety of specimens. Morphology of virus-infected cells is described and the clinical value of these observations is discussed. Cytological diagnosis offers a rapid and convenient method of detecting genital infection with these viruses which can be confirmed by conventional virological method while the patient is still in the acute stages of the disease. Confirmation can be made retrospectively by reprocessing cells identified in the Papanicolaou smear for EM. Screening for virus-infected cells in cytological smears is a technique that can be developed in any pathology laboratory prepared to provide a comprehensive cytology service; it is a useful tool in clinical diagnosis and applied research.