Transthoracic needle biopsy. Retrospective analysis and evaluation of 2 series of 267 fine needle aspiration cytologies and 292 coaxial needle specimens

Percutaneous fine-needle aspiration is a well established method for the di agnosis of peripheral lung lesion. In order to compare different methods of aspiration, we analyze retrospectively two different series: 267 fine need le aspirations (FNA) compared with the histological diagnosis on surgical s pecimens and 292 lung biopsies using a coaxial technique with comparison be tween cytological diagnosis - smears and imprints and histological diagnosi s simultaneously obtained on the same specimen. The sensitivity (92 %), the specificity (90 %) and the overal typing accurracy related to the histolog ical types obtained by FNAB are equivalent to those of the literature. The low rate of pneumothorax in the series (6 %) is related to the use of immed iate interpretation of the specimen. Automated biopsy with a coaxial cuttin g needle provide cytological specimens smears and imprint - with a high rat e of sensibility (95,3 %) and of sensibility (98 %). The overall sensitivit y of the cytological methods alone is better than biopsy (95,3 % vs. 92,9 % ), but the typing accurracy is not as good as biopsy alone (98 % vs. 100 %) . False-positive and false-negative diagnoses are the same in both series. In conclusion the percutaneous aspiration method choosed to establish a mor phological diagnosis in lung lesion depends now on the habits of the radiol ogist and the pathogist.