Evaluating the Diagnostic Accuracy of Impression Cytology for Conjunctival Lesions: A Comparative Study with Histopathology

Background & Objective: Conjunctival lesions have a wide range of histological manifestations that are difficult to distinguish clinically. The gold standard for diagnosis of these lesions is the pathological examination, a costly and invasive procedure that may also adversely affect patients. Therefore, clinical researchers seek less invasive, inexpensive, and easier methods to detect conjunctival lesions. This study aims to compare the accuracy of impression cytology with pathology in patients referred to Farshchian Hospital in Iran. Methods: In this descriptive/cross-sectional study, ۶۴ patients with conjunctival lesions were selected from patients referred to Farshchian Hospital in Hamedan in ۲۰۲۱. A cytology specimen was obtained from the patients and sent to the laboratory. The diagnostic accuracy of this method was compared with pathological results (gold standard). Data were analyzed by SPSS ۱۶ software. Results: The mean age of patients was ۵۴.۴۷ ±۱۶.۹۴ years; ۷۰.۳% were male, and ۲۹.۷% were female. In the cytologic and pathologic examination, ۲۸.۱% of the specimens showed dysplasia, and ۷۱.۹% were non-dysplastic. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, and accuracy of the cytologic impression compared to the pathologic methods were ۹۱.۳۰%, ۷۷.۷۸%, ۹۱.۳۰%, ۷۷.۷۸%, and ۸۷.۵%, respectively. A positive and significant correlation was observed between pathological and cytological diagnosis scores (r=۰.۸۲۵, P-value<۰.۰۰۱). Conclusion: In conjunctival lesions, impression cytology may be  a relatively accurate and sensitive procedure that can distinguish  dysplastic from  non-dysplastic conjunctival lesions.

کلیدواژه ها:

Conjunctival lesions ، Impression cytology ، pathology