Diagnostic value of fine needle aspiration biopsy in non-thyroidal head and neck lesions: a retrospective study of 866 aspiration materials.

AIM We aimed to investigate the diagnostic value of fine needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB) and compared our FNAB results of non-thyroidal head and neck lesions with excisional biopsy results. MATERIALS AND METHODS A total of 866 aspiration material taken from different parts of head and neck region out of thyroid were evaluated at Haydarpasa Numune Training and Research Hospital Pathology Laboratory, between January 2002 and May 2013 and 248 of which has histopathologic response were included in the study. Patients depending on origin of the masses were divided into three categories as; salivary gland, lymph nodes and soft tissue/cystic lesions. The sensitivity, specificity, diagnostic accuracy values of fine needle aspiration biopsies have been investigated for all the series and individually for each category. FINDINGS Diagnostic sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, positive predictive value and negative predictive values of non-thyroidal head and neck masses were respectively; For all of the series; 94.6%, 97.9%, 96.7%, 95.9%, 97.2%, Salivary gland: 88.9%, 100%, 98.8%, 100%, 98.7%, Lymph nodes: 94.7%, 89.3%, 92.9%, 94.7%, 89.2%, Soft tissue/cystic lesions: 100%, 100%, 100%, 100%, 100%. For all of the series; there were 4 false negative (FN) cases; and 3 false positive (FP) cases. CONCLUSION FNAB in the diagnosis of head and neck masses; it is an easy, cheap and usefull procedure.