From Cristina Brickman, MD:
1. At ANCRE we only use Dacron polyester tipped swabs and I would recommend their use; their yield is more than adequate. It is also possible to collect with the cytobrush, however it is less comfortable for patients. If you can let me know where exactly in the course the cytobrush is mentioned, we can look into and make sure there is no confusion moving forward.
We use a dacron-tipped sterile swab that is 6 inches long, the diameter of the tip is 0.203 inches (Puritan 25-806 1PD). The swab you mentioned is longer and slightly larger so it may be less comfortable for patients, although it would likely yield adequate results.
2. Perhaps the best approach is to apply the same standards to all patients; that is, to have a chaperone in the room for everyone undergoing a sensitive procedure regardless of gender. That being said, there is broad variability here, sometimes related to staffing and level of provider comfort.
