Salivary Gland Lesions: A Clinico-Pathological Correlation

To study the usefulness of clinical features, histopathological and radiological features in diagnosis and management of salivary gland lesions. Prospective study conducted at the department of ENT of a tertiary care centre in central India. A total of 162 patients who were treated over a period of 2 years for salivary gland lesions were studied with regards to correlation between clinical diagnosis, cytological examination and radiological features with histopathological diagnosis. Mean age group was 23.94 (+/- 15.43) years. There was slight male preponderance. Commonest presenting complaint was swelling. The most common gland involved was minor salivary glands followed by parotid gland. Sensitivity of clinical diagnosis, USG and FNAC for neoplastic lesions was found to be 80%, 95.65% and 79.61% respectively. Specificity of clinical diagnosis, USG and FNAC for neoplastic lesions was found to be 100%, 100% and 97.23% respectively. At the end of the study we concluded that combination of thorough clinical examination, radiological and cytological examination help in proper diagnosis, but it should always be confirmed on histopathology because some surprises are expected with regards to the nature of salivary gland lesions.