RT Journal Article SR Electronic T1 Comparison of Fine-Needle Aspiration and Core Needle Biopsy under Ultrasonographic Guidance for Detecting Malignancy and for the Tissue-Specific Diagnosis of Salivary Gland Tumors JF American Journal of Neuroradiology JO Am. J. Neuroradiol. FD American Society of Neuroradiology SP 1188 OP 1193 DO 10.3174/ajnr.A4247 VO 36 IS 6 A1 H.-J. Eom A1 J.H. Lee A1 M.-S. Ko A1 Y.J. Choi A1 R.G. Yoon A1 K.J. Cho A1 S.Y. Nam A1 J.H. Baek YR 2015 UL http://www.ajnr.org/content/36/6/1188.abstract AB BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Diagnostic test accuracy studies for ultrasonography-guided fine-needle aspiration and ultrasonography-guided core needle biopsy have shown inconclusive results due to their heterogenous study designs. Our aim was to compare the diagnostic accuracy of ultrasonography-guided fine-needle aspiration versus ultrasonography-guided core needle biopsy for detecting malignant tumors of the salivary gland and for the tissue-specific diagnosis of salivary gland tumors in a single tertiary hospital.MATERIALS AND METHODS: This retrospective study was approved by our institutional review board and informed consent was waived. Four hundred twelve patients who underwent ultrasonography-guided fine-needle aspiration (n = 155) or ultrasonography-guided core needle biopsy (n = 257) with subsequent surgical confirmation or clinical follow-up were enrolled. We compared the diagnostic accuracy of ultrasonography-guided fine-needle aspiration and ultrasonography-guided core needle biopsy regarding malignant salivary gland tumors and the correct tissue-specific diagnosis of benign and malignant tumors. We also tested the difference between these procedures according to the operator's experience and lesion characteristics.RESULTS: The inconclusive rates of ultrasonography-guided fine-needle aspiration and ultrasonography-guided core needle biopsy were 19% and 4%, respectively (P < .001). The overall accuracy of ultrasonography-guided core needle biopsy for diagnosing malignant tumors was significantly higher than that of ultrasonography-guided fine-needle aspiration (P = .024). The correct tissue-specific diagnosis rates of ultrasonography-guided fine-needle aspiration and ultrasonography-guided core needle biopsy were 95% versus 97% for benign tumors (P = .648) and 67% versus 80% for malignant tumors (P = .310). Trainees showed significantly lower accuracy with ultrasonography-guided fine-needle aspiration than with ultrasonography-guided core needle biopsy for diagnosing malignant tumors (P = .021). There was no difference between the diagnostic accuracy of ultrasonography-guided fine-needle aspiration and ultrasonography-guided core needle biopsy according to the internal composition of the lesions. There were no complications requiring intervention or hospitalization in our patients.CONCLUSIONS: Ultrasonography-guided core needle biopsy is superior to ultrasonography-guided fine-needle aspiration in detecting and characterizing malignant tumors of the salivary gland and could emerge as the diagnostic method of choice for patients presenting with a salivary gland mass.CNBcore needle biopsyFNAfine-needle aspirationUSultrasonographyUSCNBultrasonography-guided core needle biopsyUSFNAultrasonography-guided fine-needle aspiration