Diagnostic Value of Ultra-Sonographic Guided Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology (FNAC) in Intra-Abdominal Solid Mass in Children

Background: Ultrasound-guided fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) is an essentialdiagnostic tool for detecting intra-abdominal masses, offering a cost-effective, safe, andaccurate method for diagnosing benign and malignant lesions. Objective: This studyaimed to establish ultrasound-guided FNAC as an accurate diagnostic method for intraabdominal solid masses and correlate FNAC findings with histological results.Methods: A prospective comparative study was conducted from November 2022 toJanuary 2024 at Sher-e-Bangla Medical College Hospital (SBMCH), Barisal, involving45 pediatric patients (24 males, 21 females) aged 3 months to 14 years. All patientsunderwent both FNAC and open biopsy. Data were analysed using SPSS v. 26 softwareto determine the accuracy of FNAC compared to histopathological findings. Results:Out of 45 cases, 10 (22.2%) were cytologically diagnosed as benign, including 4(8.9%) non-neoplastic and 6 (13.3%) benign neoplastic. Thirty-three (73.3%) werediagnosed as malignant. Upon histological examination, 9 cases (20%) were confirmedbenign, and 36 (80%) were malignant. One case showed a false negative (malignanthistology, benign cytology). There were no false positives, with a sensitivity of 97.06%and a specificity of 100%. Conclusion: Ultrasound-guided FNAC is a highly accurate,non-invasive, and cost-effective diagnostic tool for intra-abdominal solid masses inpediatric patients, significantly reducing the need for surgical interventions.