[Coin lesions: 5 years of percutaneous needle aspiration]

197 patients with either malignant (No. 175) or infections (No. 22) chest coin lesions had lung aspirations using fine-needles, 18 to 22 gauge. All the patients previously had flexible fiberoptic bronchoscopy with negative results. A positive diagnosis of malignancy was established in 138 (70%), with identification of cell type in 51 (37%), and of infectious disease in 11 (50%). The procedure's sensitivity for malignant lesions was 79.3% and the specificity was 96.5%. Complications were minimal (hemoptysis and pneumothorax), although some patients had COPD and hypoxemia.