# Cervical erosion (ectropion)

- Category: chronic
- Review status: reviewed (every claim checked against a document named on this page)
- Sources: Cervical Ectropion - StatPearls - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK560709/ · ICPC-3 (WONCA International Classification of Primary Care, 3rd edition) class GD65.00 - condition scope only, no dose · No dose - referral pathway, no medicine given in primary care
- Verified date: 2026-08

## Verified against

- No dose - referral pathway, no medicine given in primary care
- Cervical erosion (ectropion) - disease-level clinical article (cervical-ectropion-clinical.txt)

## Treatment metadata

- No drug therapy in primary care (Referral & Advice)

## Complete treatment card

```text
CERVICAL EROSION (ECTROPION)
Sources: Cervical Ectropion - StatPearls - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK560709/ · ICPC-3
         (WONCA International Classification of Primary Care, 3rd edition) class GD65.00 - condition
         scope only, no dose · No dose - referral pathway, no medicine given in primary care
Review status: REVIEWED against No dose - referral pathway, no medicine given in primary care,
               Cervical erosion (ectropion) - disease-level clinical article
               (cervical-ectropion-clinical.txt)  (2026-08)

IS IT THIS? - reference only, to read alongside your own examination
  SYMPTOMS - what the patient reports (8)
    - Vaginal discharge, non-purulent and white or yellow, is the most common complaint  [vaginal
      discharge]
    - Bleeding after intercourse occurs in 5 to 25 percent of affected women  [bleeding]
    - Bleeding between periods can occur  [abnormal uterine bleeding]
    - Painful intercourse is a reported symptom  [painful intercourse]
    - Pelvic pain is a reported symptom  [abdominal pain · pelvic pain]
    - Recurring episodes of cervicitis are reported
    - Low back pain is a reported symptom  [back pain]
    - Urinary symptoms such as disturbed voiding are reported
  SIGNS - what you find (1)
    - Everted columnar epithelium looks red and forms a ring around the external os on speculum exam
  TESTS (6)
    - Direct speculum exam alone can show and quantify the reddish area around the os
    - Nucleic acid amplification testing checks for chlamydial and gonococcal infection
    - A triple swab - endocervical plus high vaginal samples - excludes cervicitis, especially with
      purulent discharge
    - Pap smear and colposcopy are used to help exclude CIN or cervical cancer
    - Colposcopy with biopsy is used when the visual exam cannot exclude neoplasia
    - A qualitative urine beta-hCG test checks for pregnancy, a known driver of ectropion
  IF NOT THIS - what else fits (8)
    - Cervical cancer can mimic ectropion with postcoital bleeding, discharge and a red cervical os,
      prompting further testing
    - Cervical intraepithelial neoplasia is considered when the red area around the os on speculum
      exam looks alarming
    - Infectious cervicitis is considered with increased discharge, postcoital bleeding and
      intermenstrual bleeding
    - Chronic, non-gonococcal non-chlamydial cervicitis is a separate differential
    - Vulvovaginitis is listed among the differentials
    - PID is favored by fever, dysmenorrhea, dyschezia, vulvovaginal itching, blood-stained purulent
      discharge, pelvic pain and cervical motion tenderness
    - Desquamative inflammatory vaginitis is a chronic condition most common in perimenopausal women
    - Pregnancy itself is on the differential list
  Source  StatPearls "Cervical Ectropion" - disease-level clinical article
  Status  traced to the source above

1. NO DRUG THERAPY IN PRIMARY CARE (REFERRAL & ADVICE)    [1st line]
   Adult    Cervical ectropion/erosion is a common benign finding that usually needs only
            reassurance; the hormonal explanation in the source description reflects older teaching,
            and this is now generally considered a normal variant rather than a disease. Refer if it
            bleeds persistently. - Refer, with advice
   Peds     Children follow the same pathway: recognise and refer. No primary-care medicine is
            implied.
   Source   No dose - referral pathway, no medicine given in primary care
   Why      Cervical ectropion/erosion is a common benign finding that usually needs only
            reassurance; the hormonal explanation in the source description reflects older teaching,
            and this is now generally considered a normal variant rather than a disease. Refer if it
            bleeds persistently.
   Caution  No medicine is prescribed for this in primary care - this entry is for recognition and
            referral. Anything given is decided by the service it is referred to.
            RED FLAG - Macroscopic visualization cannot reliably differentiate cervical ectropion
            from cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) or cervical cancer, necessitating
            screening/testing to rule out malignancy.
            RED FLAG - Persistent postcoital bleeding, bleeding after the menopause, or a lesion
            that looks atypical on examination: refer.

Prices are indicative (dataset snapshot 2026-06); verify with the pharmacy.
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