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Sonographically Guided Core Needle Biopsy of Cervical Lymphadenopathy in Patients Without Known Malignancy
Author(s) -
Kim Byung Moon,
Kim Eun-Kyung,
Kim Min Jung,
Yang Woo-Ik,
Park Cheong Soo,
Park Sung Il
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
journal of ultrasound in medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.574
H-Index - 91
eISSN - 1550-9613
pISSN - 0278-4297
DOI - 10.7863/jum.2007.26.5.585
Subject(s) - medicine , biopsy , malignancy , radiology , cervical lymphadenopathy , lymph node biopsy , pathology , disease
Objective The purpose of this study was to retrospectively evaluate the efficacy of sonographically guided core needle biopsy (core biopsy) for diagnosing the causes of cervical lymphadenopathy in patients without known malignancy. Methods One hundred fifty‐five sonographically guided core biopsies performed in 155 patients with cervical lymphadenopathy were retrospectively evaluated. None of the 155 patients had any known primary malignancy. Final diagnoses were determined by the histologic examination from excision biopsy when performed or by the clinical and sonographic follow‐up for more than 12 months. When a lymph node diagnosed as benign by sonographically guided core biopsy regressed spontaneously or by subsequent management, the diagnosis made by the sonographically guided core biopsy was considered correct. When a lymph node diagnosed as benign by sonographically guided core biopsy was unchanged or increased in size with subsequent management, excision biopsy was performed. Diagnostic yield, sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, and complications of core biopsy were evaluated. Results Histologic diagnosis could be made by sonographically guided core biopsy in 146 (94%) of the 155 patients. The histologic diagnoses were reactive hyperplasia in 44 patients, tuberculosis in 37, Kikuchi disease in 25, metastasis in 16, lymphoma in 16, normal in 7, and toxoplasmosis in 1. Sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of sonographically guided core biopsy were 97.9%, 99.1%, and 97.9%, respectively. There were no procedure‐related complications. Conclusions Sonographically guided core biopsy is a safe and efficient tool for diagnosing the cause of cervical lymphadenopathy in patients without known malignancy and may obviate unnecessary excisional biopsy.