[Ultrasound-guided fine-needle biopsy with an automatic full-incision system: the initial experiences and comparison...

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of a new automatic biopsy device (Autovac, Angiomed, Karlsruhe, Germany) in ultrasound (US) guided biopsies of focal abdominal lesions. 50 consecutive patients with focal abdominal lesions underwent US guided biopsies. In the first 24 patients, needle passes were performed with the Autovac system (outer diameter 0.95 mm) as well as with the Biopty gun (outer diameter 0.9 mm) (Bard Covington, USA). The size and the quality of the histologic and the cytologic material obtained by both systems were evaluated by histopathologists blinded to the system used. Autovac yielded significantly more material (defined as the area of the obtained tissue cores) and a significantly higher quality score than did the Biopty system. 96% of the histologic specimen and 100% of the cytologic smears obtained with Autovac were diagnostic, compared to 70 and 81% with Biopty, respectively. With the exception of a short-time elevation of the blood pressure in one patient, no complications occurred. The results indicate an advantage of the automatic full-cut type system Autovac over the tru-cut type Biopty gun in US-guided biopsies of focal abdominal lesions.