Diagnosing cervical biopsies in adolescents: the use of p16 immunohistochemistry to improve reliability and reproducibility.

Objective: To increase the specificity in diagnosing cervical biopsies in adolescents, we evaluated the use of p16 immunohistochemistry (IHC) as an adjuvant test in addition to hematoxylin and eosin (H&E).

Materials And Methods: One hundred cervical histological tissues from adolescents were stained with routine H&E and monoclonal p16 (clone E6H4; dilution, 1:25; Dako). One gynecologic pathologist and 3 pediatric pathologists independently reviewed the cases, rendered diagnoses first by using H&E alone, and then added p16 IHC as an adjuvant marker.