Optically clear and vacuolated nuclei. Two useful signs for the transoperative diagnosis of papillary carcinoma of the thyroid.

Ground glass nuclei and Orphan Annie Eye nuclei are currently accepted as the most useful signs for the diagnosis of papillary carcinoma of the thyroid. The nuclear appearance, however, is not used in transoperative studies because the general opinion is that they are only found in permanent sections. To compare the nuclear aspect of the permanent with frozen sections and imprints, a prospective double-blind study of 48 transoperative thyroid specimens was performed. The results show that the nuclei are similar when examined by the three techniques.