A Retrospective Study Of Comparison Of Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology (FNAC) With Histopathological Diagnosis (HPE) In Thyroid Swelling: A Tertiary Care Hospital Experience.

A Retrospective Study Of Comparison Of FNAC With HPE In Thyroid Swelling

Abstract

Background: Fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) has become the dominant method in the evaluation of thyroid nodules, being fast, reliable, safe, minimally invasive, cost effective. Its main role lies in differentiating between benign and malignant lesions which significantly affects decision making in treatment. This study was undertaken to establish the cytology –histopathology co relation. Material And Methods: This retrospective study was carried out in hospital attached with NHL Municipal Medical College, Ahmedabad having 125 cases in study. The statistical analysis included sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value and accuracy. Result: On cytological examination, 102/125were benign, 23 malignant or suspicious. On HPE, 97 were benign while 18 malignant from suspicious and malignant cases leaving 10 discordant cases. Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value and accuracy which was 78.26%, 95.09%, 78.26%, 95.09% and 92% respectively in our case series.Conclusion: FNAC is safe, simple procedure. It gives a reliable pre-operative cytological diagnosis based on which surgical procedures can be confidently executed. An attempt is made hereby to compare our results with worldwide documented literature. However pitfalls of this method should be kept in mind with careful observation and adequate clinical suspicion. [Dalal N Natl J Integr Res Med, 2020; 11(5):21-27]