Septal Schwannoma of the Nose: A Rare Case.

A schwannoma is a benign tumor arising from Schwann cells present in the nerve sheath of myelinated nerves.It is rarely seen in the nose and paranasal sinuses, and it very rarely originates from the nasal septum. A 40-year-old female presented to our outpatient department with a gradual onset, progressive, left nasal obstruction since the last 4 years. On performing a local examination, a soft tissue mass occupying the left nasal cavity was seen. Surgery via the external approach was performed; the mass was found to arise from the nasal septum and was totally excised. Histopathologic examination revealed a schwannoma. Nasal septal schwannoma along with review of the literature is a rare entity. It should be considered in the differential diagnosis of benign tumors of the nasal cavity.

Role of fine-needle aspiration cytology and core needle biopsy in diagnosing musculoskeletal neoplasms.

BACKGROUND: The management of musculoskeletal neoplasms requires an accurate diagnosis, histologic type, and degree of tumor differentiation. AIM: The present study was undertaken to compare the accuracy of fine-needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) and core needle biopsy (CNB) in the diagnosis of musculoskeletal tumors and further to compare the results with histopathological examination of surgical specimens. Grading of malignant tumors was also compared on these techniques. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This prospective study was conducted on 50 patients with musculoskeletal neoplasms. Detailed history, clinical examination, and radiological investigations were undertaken. FNAC followed by CNB were performed in each case. The tumors were categorized as benign and malignant with a definitive histotype diagnosis. For malignant neoplasms, cytologic and histologic gradings were done into three grades. The sensitivity and specificity of FNAC and CNB were compared. RESULTS: Of the 50 cases with musculoskeletal neoplasms, 32 (64%) were bone tumors and 18 (36%) were soft tissue tumors. The sensitivity of FNAC and CNB for categorizing bone tumors into benign and malignant was 94.7%. For soft tissue tumors, FNAC had a sensitivity of 90.9% and CNB had a sensitivity of 100%. The specificity of both the techniques, FNA and CNB for bone and soft tissue tumors was 100%. For malignant bone tumors, cytologic grade was concordant with CNB grade in 72.2% of the cases. Cytologic grade was concordant with the grade on CNB in 81.8% cases for malignant soft tissue neoplasms. CONCLUSION: FNAC and CNB alleviate the need for an open biopsy in diagnosing and grading musculoskeletal neoplasms, thus facilitating appropriate therapeutic intervention.