Evaluation of CT-guided biopsy in diagnosing space-occupying lesions of the pancreas / 介入放射学杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To assess the diagnostic value of CT-gnided pereutaneous fine-needle aspiration biopsy (FANB) for the space-occupying lesions of the pancreas. Methods The authors retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 68 patients with pancreatic lesions who underwent CT-guided percutaneous fine-needle aspiration biopsy. The lesions were located at the pancreatic head (n = 49), body (n = 12) or tail (n = 7). The maximum diameter of the 68 lesions ranged from 2 cm to 7 cm. The lesion's diameter was < 3 cm in 10 cases and was ≥ 3 cm in 58 cases. A 20-gauge fine-needle was used to puncture and to make the aspiration in all patients. Both plain and contrast-enhanced abdominal CT scanning were performed before the biopsy procedure. The technical key points of aspiration biopsy included selection of the appropriate cross-section, the entry of the needle, and multiple insertions in fan-like fashion with fast manipulation of puncture and aspiration. All biopsy specimens were sent for pathologic evaluation. Results All the lesions were safely and successfully punctured through the anterior approach without major complications. The technical success of needle puncturing was 100%. Of 68 patients, the pathological results obtained from the biopsy included malignant tumor in 46, benign lesion in 17 and no abnormal finding in 5, of which follow-up observation found no abnormality in 2 and malignant process was eventually confirmed in remaining three. The overall accuracy, specificity and sensitivity of the biopsy were 96%, 95% and 100%, respectively. The accuracy of CT-guided biopsy for malignant and benign lesions was 94% and 100% respectively (P > 0.05). The diagnostic accuracy for lesions larger than 3.0 cm (97%) or located at the pancreatic tail (100%) was a little higher than that for lesions smaller than 3.0 cm (90%) or located at the pancreatic head (96%) or body (92%), although the difference was not statistically significant (P > 0.05). No serious complications occurred in our series. Conclusion CT-guided percutaneous fine-needle aspiration biopsy is a safe and effective technique for the diagnosis and differentiation of the space-occupying lesions of the pancreas.