title: [Diagnostic accuracy of fine needle aspiration cytology in parotid tumours].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) is a globally accepted technique in the preoperative evaluations of head and neck tumours; however, the effectiveness in the interpretation of salivary glands neoplastic lesions is still controversial. The objective of this study consisted of assessing the efficacy of FNAC in preoperative diagnosis of parotid tumours.
  
  
  METHODS
  This retrospective study was conducted using 93 patient samples with parotid gland tumoral pathology, treated at the Otorhinolaryngology Department in our institution during the 2007-2011 period. Preoperative FNAC was employed and the patients subsequently submitted to surgical excision with histopathological diagnosis of the specimen. Cytology results were classified as negative for malignancy, positive for malignancy or insufficient sample, and later compared with the definitive histological diagnosis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The mean age of the studied sample was 52.9 years (range: 11 to 88 years); 55.9% were men. The FNAC showed significant sensitivity of 57.1%, with a specificity of 95.1%, for detecting malignancy in parotid gland tumours. The positive and negative predictive values for malignancy were 50 and 96.3%, respectively.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  FNAC is considered a simple test but of limited use for diagnostic guidance in tumour pathology of the parotid gland in our environment, mainly because of its low sensitivity. However, the high specificity and high negative predictive value of FNAC makes it a more accurate test in benign or negative result cases.
authors.affiliation: Servicio de Otorrinolaringología, Hospital Universitario Dr. Peset, Valencia, España. Electronic address: va.zerpa@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Vanessa
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Zerpa Zerpa
authors.affiliation: Servicio de Otorrinolaringología, Hospital Universitario Dr. Peset, Valencia, España.
authors.forename: Maria Teresa
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Cuesta Gonzáles
authors.affiliation: Servicio de Otorrinolaringología, Hospital Universitario Dr. Peset, Valencia, España.
authors.forename: Gabriela
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Agostini Porras
authors.affiliation: Servicio de Otorrinolaringología, Hospital Universitario Dr. Peset, Valencia, España.
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Marcano Acuña
authors.affiliation: Servicio de Otorrinolaringología, Hospital Universitario Dr. Peset, Valencia, España.
authors.forename: Enrique
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Estellés Ferriol
authors.affiliation: Servicio de Otorrinolaringología, Hospital Universitario Dr. Peset, Valencia, España.
authors.forename: José
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Dalmau Galofre
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D044963:Biopsy, Fine-Needle; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010307:Parotid Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Citología; Cytology; Fine-needle aspiration; Glándula parótida; Glándulas salivales; Neoplasias parotídeas; Parotid gland; Parotid neoplasm; Punción aspiración con aguja fina; Salivary glands