PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Voss, M
AU  - Hammel, P
AU  - Molas, G
AU  - Palazzo, L
AU  - Dancour, A
AU  - O'Toole, D
AU  - Terris, B
AU  - Degott, C
AU  - Bernades, P
AU  - Ruszniewski, P
TI  - Value of endoscopic ultrasound guided fine needle aspiration biopsy in the diagnosis of solid pancreatic masses
AID  - 10.1136/gut.46.2.244
DP  - 2000 Feb 01
TA  - Gut
PG  - 244--249
VI  - 46
IP  - 2
4099  - http://gut.bmj.com/content/46/2/244.short
4100  - http://gut.bmj.com/content/46/2/244.full
SO  - Gut2000 Feb 01; 46
AB  - AIM To assess the feasibility and diagnostic accuracy of endoscopic ultrasound guided fine needle biopsy (EUS-FNAB) in patients with solid pancreatic masses. METHODS Ninety nine consecutive patients with pancreatic masses were studied. Histological findings obtained by EUS-FNAB were compared with the final diagnosis assessed by surgery, biopsy of other tumour site or at postmortem examination, or by using a combination of clinical course, imaging features, and tumour markers. RESULTS EUS-FNAB was feasible in 90 patients (adenocarcinomas, n = 59; neuroendocrine tumours, n = 15; various neoplasms, n = 6; pancreatitis, n = 10), and analysable material was obtained in 73. Tumour size (⩾ or < 25 mm in diameter) did not influence the ability to obtain informative biopsy samples. Diagnostic accuracy was 74.4% (adenocarcinomas, 81.4%; neuroendocrine tumours, 46.7%; other lesions, 75%; p<0.02). Overall, the diagnostic yield in all 99 patients was 68%. Successful biopsies were performed in six patients with portal hypertension. Minor complications (moderate bleeding or pain) occurred in 5% of cases. CONCLUSIONS EUS-FNAB is a useful and safe method for the investigation of pancreatic masses, with a high feasibility rate even when lesions are small. Overall diagnostic accuracy of EUS-FNAB seems to depend on the tumour type.