Percutaneous core needle biopsy in the diagnosis of mediastinal tumors.

OBJECTIVE

to determine the contribution of percutaneous core cutting needle biopsy (PCNB) in the diagnosis of mediastinal tumors.

DESIGN

retrospective review of 70 patients with mediastinal lesions who underwent CT-guided PCNB between 1988 and 1996.

RESULTS

PCNB provided adequate material in 62/70 cases, giving a total sample rate of 88.6%. Of these 62 patients, 57 were diagnosed correctly by PCNB whereas 5/62 were misdiagnosed as nonspecific inflammation, providing an overall sensitivity of 91.9%. PCNB established a specific histologic diagnosis in 90.3% of the patients, mainly in cases of lymphoma, bronchogenic carcinoma, and thymoma. Pneumothorax was the most commonly encountered complication (11%). Hemoptysis (30-50 ml) occurred in only one (1.6%) of the patients.

CONCLUSION

CT guided PCNB is an easy and safe procedure which can provide a precise diagnosis in the majority of mediastinal tumors and can obviate the need for exploratory thoracic surgery in cases which are medically treatable or non-resectable.