Role of FNAC in the diagnosis of salivary gland lesions - A tertiary care hospital experience

ABSTRACT

Introduction: Swelling of salivary glands, specifically parotid and submandibular gland presents as a common problem and being readily visible creates havoc among patients. In addition parotid/ submandibular swellings also remain a diagnostic challenge among clinicians. The aim of this study was to examine the sensitivity and specificity of Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology (FNAC) as a tool for diagnosis of salivary gland lesions. Materials and Methods: This prospective observational study was done for 6 months from January 2022 to June 2022 at Dhiraj General Hospital, SBKSMI and RC, Waghodia, Gujarat. In present study, total 42 cases were taken with salivary gland lesions that underwent FNAC in Pathology department. Results: In the present study, we had included 42 cases of salivary gland lesions. Out of 42cases, 12 (28.5%) cases were neoplastic and 30 (71.5%) cases were non-neoplastic. Among 12 neoplastic cases, 8 (67%) cases were found out to be benign and 4(33%) cases were diagnosed as malignant. Among malignant lesions, mucoepidermoid carcinoma has the highest number of cases (50%) followed by Carcinoma-ex pleomorphic adenoma and Adenoid cystic carcinoma. Conclusion: We found a good concordance between FNAC and final histology. Awareness of the therapeutic implications and limitations of the cytological interpretation amongst both the clinicians and the cytopathologists should enable FNAC to its best advantage.