Imprint cytology: A diagnostic aid in interpretation of upper gastrointestinal endoscopic biopsies

Context: Although major advances have occurred in the cytological diagnosis of various organ pathologies, gastrointestinal (GI) cytology has not gained popularity and is only occasionally practiced in the form of brushings and washings. Biopsy touch imprint cytology (IC) is a rapid, simple and inexpensive method of diagnosis of upper GI lesions. Thus, a study to show a correlation of IC and standard histopathology will allow the procedure to be performed routinely as adjunct to histopathology. Aims: To correlate results of imprints made from upper GI biopsies with histopathology in case of suspected upper GI lesions and to compare detection of Helicobacter pylori by IC and histopathology in suspected H. pylori infection. Subjects and Methods: One hundred and ten cases of upper GI endoscopic biopsies were included in the study. Touch imprints were made from the biopsies, stained and studied. The same tissue was put in 10% formalin for histopathological processing. Results of IC were compared with histopathology. Statistical Analysis Used: Chi-square/Fisher exact test were used to find out significance of study parameters. Results: Sensitivity and specificity of IC for neoplastic lesions were 94.3%, 100% for esophageal lesions; 88.2%, 97.14% for gastric lesions and 100%, 100% for duodenal lesions respectively, which correlated with other studies. Imprint smears for H. pylori had sensitivity of 80%, which was higher than that of brush cytology. Conclusions: IC is a valuable diagnostic tool and can be routinely applied as an adjunct to histopathological examination in the diagnosis of GI lesions