Can misdiagnosis in preoperative FNAC of thyroid nodule indluence surgical treatment?

BACKGROUND: Pre-operative cytology in thyroid disease remains the most appropriate diagnostic test for defining the nature of a thyroid nodule before surgical excision. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We selected the most recent 825 surgical thyroid procedures performed in our institution from January 2004 to June 2007; 776 were total thyroidectomies, 23 were lobe-isthmectomies, and 26 were radical neck dissections. We distributed the data based on pre-operative cytology. Each cytological diagnosis was compared to results obtained by definitive histology. Tumors were called incidentalomas if they consisted of a neoplastic focus with a low grade of aggressiveness, as demonstrated by dimension