Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology Correlates with Histopathology – A Diagnostic Tool in Children.

Abstract

Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology (FNAC) in simple words is aspiration by fine It is the study of cells obtained by puncturing organs of human body with the use of a small-gauge needle. It has become an increasingly popular and widely accepted procedure for evaluating palpable, nonpalpable, superficial, deep masses and can be readily applied for providing diagnosis in pediatric patients. This research aims to study the spectrum of lesions aspirated in pediatric patients and to correlate the cytological diagnosis with the histopathological diagnosis. Materials & methods: This is the prospective study which included children aged 0-18 years of either sex with swelling in any part of the body during the years 2008-2010 investigated by FNAC with/without a biopsy. FNAC smears were stained with haematoxylin and eosin (HE only 15.75% were unsatisfactory. Of the 84.24% satisfactory aspirates, the majority were benign 82.82%.The benign cytological diagnosis revealed lymphadenitis in the majority 60.73%. Of the malignant cases, the maximum were small round cell tumours 42.85%. Histopathological examination was possible in 64 cases and 56 were confirmed on histology. The diagnostic accuracy of FNAC was 87.50%. Its sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive value was 90.32%, 100%, 100% and 25.00% respectively. p value <0.05 indicated statistical significance. Conclusion: FNAC is a simple, safe, rapid, sensitive, specific and an inexpensive bedside method. It provides diagnostic and therapeutic advantages. It helps the surgeon to select, guide and modify surgical treatment. FNAC is recommended as a first line of investigation and a diagnostic modality in children.