Reliability of balloon-mesh cytology in detecting esophageal carcinoma in a population of US veterans.
A catheter, equipped with a terminal balloon covered with nylon mesh, was developed to study the reliability of abrasive cytology for the diagnosis of esophageal carcinoma. Eighty-seven balloon cytology analyses were attempted in 82 subjects. Four patients were unable to swallow the balloon. In the 78 successful attempts, the initial diagnoses were: esophagitis (34) and esophageal carcinoma (13), established by endoscopic examination and histologic sampling; and normal esophagus (31) confirmed histologically in 25. The remaining 6 controls were younger than 40 years old, without any significant history of smoking, drinking and esophageal symptoms. For esophageal carcinoma, the sensitivity of balloon cytology was 91% and the specificity was 94% with four false-positives. Balloon cytology was generally well-tolerated and easily performed. This method is now being tested for screening high-risk patients for esophageal carcinoma.
D001706:Biopsy / Q000295:instrumentation; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000175:diagnosis*; D002404:Catheterization / Q000295:instrumentation; D004938:Esophageal Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis*; D004941:Esophagitis / Q000175:diagnosis; D006801:Humans; D014728:Veterans