title: Validation of cytopathology as a technique for analysis of epithelial cell maturation in oral mucosa of smokers and nonsmokers.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To validate quantitative analysis of epithelial cells in oral mucosa smears of smokers and nonsmokers.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sixty samples from the oral mucosa of 10 smokers and 10 nonsmokers were collected from the anatomic sites more frequently affected by oral cancer: lower lip, border of the tongue and floor of the mouth. Slides were stained using Papanicolau and Traut techniques; anucleated squamous, nucleated superficial and intermediate cells were counted.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The first 50, the first 100 and all nonoverlapping cells on the slide were counted. To compare percentages of cell types, Pearson's correlation coefficient was used. In the first 50 cells analyzed, there was no significant correlation for anucleated cells in lower lip samples of smokers and border of the tongue samples of nonsmokers; for the other types of cells, a significant correlation was found. For the first 100 cells analyzed, all types of cells in the 3 anatomic sites showed a significant correlation, both in smokers and nonsmokers.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The quantification of the first 100 cells proved to be sufficient to evaluate the epithelial maturation pattern in smears of the lower lip, border of the tongue and floor of the mouth of smokers and nonsmokers.
authors.affiliation: Graduate Program in Dentistry, School of Dentistry, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.
authors.forename: Luhana
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Gedoz
authors.forename: Paula Luce
authors.initials: PL
authors.lastname: Bohrer
authors.forename: Ricardo Losekan
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Paiva
authors.forename: João Batista
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Burzlaff
authors.forename: Cassiano Kuchenbecker
authors.initials: CK
authors.lastname: Rösing
authors.forename: Manoel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sant'Ana Filho
authors.forename: Pantelis Varvaki
authors.initials: PV
authors.lastname: Rados
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000473:pathology; D002452:Cell Count; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D004847:Epithelial Cells / Q000473:pathology* / Q000502:physiology; D006651:Histocytochemistry / Q000592:standards*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009061:Mouth Mucosa / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D009062:Mouth Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology; D012907:Smoking / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D013194:Staining and Labeling