Evaluation of leprosy lesions by skin smear cytology in comparison to histopathology.

Cytological evaluation of leprosy skin lesion was done to evaluate cytohistological correlation. Twenty five clinically suspected patients of leprosy were evaluated by performing fine needle aspiration (FNA) in nodular lesions and slit skin smear technique in flat lesions to classify across R-J scale. May-Grunwald-Giemsa (MGG) and Ziehl-Neelsen stain were employed on slit skin smears and fine needle aspiration material. Histopathological assessment of slides from same lesion was done. The overall diagnostic accuracy of fine needle aspiration was 76.1% and that of slit skin smear 50%. However, on adequate material diagnostic accuracy of slit skin smear was high, 100% as compared to 81.8% of fine needle aspiration smears. In cases of polar leprosy cytological findings paralleled histopathological diagnosis. Within the constraints of cytological interpretation the cases in borderline unstable spectrum of leprosy can be classified broadly.