Will a yeast infection affect a pap smear reading?

Sometimes it does: Vaginal yeast infections differ in severity, such as mild, moderate, etc..., and so they cause different amounts of inflammation on the surfaces of the cervix and vagina. Sometimes there is enough inflammation to make a pap smear harder to read. In those cases, after treating the yeast infection, a doctor may choose to repeat a pap smear at some time, depending on the cervical cancer risk factors.

Perhaps...: The organisms that cause yeast infections are often obvious when a pap smear is examined. The yeast infection can sometimes induce changes in the cells in a pap smear that simulate dysplasia or atypia. Occasionally it is difficult to tell the two apart. Hpv testing results can sometimes sort out this conundrum, or at least determine what the correct follow up should be.