Histopathologic and fine needle aspiration correlation of salivary gland masses

IntroductionSalivary gland swellings can arise from a number of aetiologies including tumours, inflammatory processes or cysts. Clinical examination and imaging techniques can be inaccurate to reveal the exact nature of these lesions. Fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) is used as the main initial diagnostic investigation for swellings in the head and neck region as a simple, rapid and safe method.Aims:The aims of this study are to correlate FNAC diagnoses with histopathology and to establish the sensitivity and specificity of FNAC in diagnosis of salivary gland swellings.Material and Method:A total of 145 salivary gland FNAs performed at Inonu University Turgut Ozal Medical Centre between 2007 and 2010 were retrospectively reviewed and the correlation between the FNAC and the histopathologic diagnosis of the 77 cases with resection samples as well as the epidemiological information of patients were evaluated.Findings:The sensitivity of FNAC to establish the accurate diagnosis was 70% and the specificity was 91,2 % with a positive predictive value of 73,6 % and negative predictive value of %89,6. The effectiveness rate was 85,7%.Results:FNAC is highly sensitive and specific technique for the diagnosis of most of the salivary gland lesions. It is a valuable tool for pre-operative diagnose and to determine the need for surgical intervention and assist in planning the appropriate surgical approach prior to resection.Key Words: Salivary gland lesions, thin injection aspirations, histopathology correlation.