Introduction

Intraoperative cytology is a common technique used in the diagnosis of CNS neoplasms. Similarly, Imprint cytology technique in breast lesions is a  simple  and  cost effective on table diagnostic tool where  facilities for the commonly used  frozen section studies are not available.^1-6  Imprint is comparable to frozen section as a tool for intra operative  and post-mortem diagnosis^7-10 In this study we evaluate the accuracy of  imprint cytology in rapid on table diagnosis  of breast lesions in comparison with  histopathology.

Subjects and Methods

The present study is a cross sectional study performed on all specimens of breast lesions received over a period of 17 months from September 2012 to January 2014. All breast specimens including mastectomy, lumpectomy, excision are included in the study with the exclusion of trucut biopsy. A total number of 71 cases were obtained.

Clinical and gross details of the patients were recorded. Imprint cytology of freshly excised tissue is prepared and stained with toluidene blue and Giemsa stains. The smears were studied and specific cytological diagnosis were made independently. The imprint smear findings are categorized into benign and malignant groups. Routine hematoxylin and eosin staining were done on tissue sections after fixation and histopatho-logical diagnosis were made for the lesions. Taking histopathology as a gold standard, sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value for diagnosing malignant lesions by imprint cytology are calculated.

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Dr Ronald J. Bosco
Trichy SRM Medical College
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