Conventional scraping versus fine needle aspiration cytology in the diagnosis of cutaneous leishmaniasis.

Cutaneous leishmaniasis is an endemic parasitic disease, the diagnosis of which is important for its successful management. Whereas conventional scraping is a technique widely employed for detecting the parasite, fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) is used rarely. The value of these two techniques for confirming the clinical diagnosis was compared prospectively in 46 cases. The study indicated that both methods are comparable if performed by trained individuals. However, FNAC is easier to perform and repeat and takes less time to demonstrate the organism. Therefore, FNAC is recommended as the method of choice in confirming the clinical suspicion of cutaneous leishmaniasis in endemic areas.