OBJECTIVETo evaluate the value of endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration (EBUS-TBNA) in diagnosis of mediastinal lesions and to discuss its optimal indication.

METHODSOne hundred and twenty three patients with mediastinal lesions who underwent EBUS-TBNA were included in this study. The accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive value of EBUS-TBNA in diagnosis of mediastinal lesions were analyzed according to the final diagnosis and evaluate its value and the optimal indication.

RESULTSIn the 123 patients, EBUS-TBNA was successfully performed to obtain samples from 286 stations of lymph nodes (2.33 stations/per patient). The puncture success rate was 100%. The procedure was uneventful without complications. Final diagnosis indicated that there were 83 positive and 40 negative patients. EBUS-TBNA had a sensitivity of 95.2%, specificity of 100%, positive predictive value of 100%, negative predictive value of 90.0%, and overall accuracy of 96.8%. For diagnosis of the epithelial cancer, EBUS-TBNA had an accuracy of 98.8%, sensitivity of 98.8%, specificity of 100%, positive predictive value of 100%, and negative predictive value of 100%. EBUS-TBNA failed to reveal three lymphomas. For diagnosis of benign mediastinal diseases, EBUS-TBNA had a diagnosis rate of 47.2% which had a confirmed clinical application value.

CONCLUSIONSEBUS-TBNA may be expected to replace the mediastinoscopy as a superior choice for diagnosis of mediastinal epithelial cancers. EBUS-TBNA can not replace mediastinoscopy but being a promising tool for diagnosis of benign mediastinal lesions including granulomas. For certain special diseases such as lymphoma, mediastinoscopy cannot be replaced. However, EBUS-TBNA can be a potentially favorite choice for early stage screening.