Abstract: Objective To evaluate the diagnostic value and complications of CT-guided percutaneous lung biopsy for the elderly solitary pulmonary nodules.
MethodsA total of 113 patients from January 2008 to January 2014 with solitary pulmonary nodules who were performed by percutaneous transthoracic needle biopsy by CT-guided were reviewed. All of the patients were confirmed by pathology or clinical course. The CT scan was used to choose the best targeted level and the puncture point. Results Specimens of 113 patients were obtained successfully. Ninetyfour cases were proved to be malignancies and 19 cases of benign lesions by biopsy. Ninety-six cases （85.0％） of malignancies and 17 cases （15.0％） of benign lesions were proved by pathology and clinical course. The diagnostic accuracy， sensitivity and specificity were 96.5％， 97.1％ and 90.0％， respectively. The diagnostic accuracy of large nodules group （＞15mm and ≤30mm，n=98） was 98.9％， higher than 80.0％ of small nodules group （≤15mm， n=15） with statistical significance （P=0.007）. The main complications were phenmothorax （19.5％） and selflimiting bleeding （13.3％） and both of them were mild. No deathrelated complications happened. The incidence of phenmothorax was related to puncture times （P=0.002） and the length of puncture needle in lung tissues （P=0.06）. Conclusion CT-guided percutaneous lung biopsy for the elderly solitary pulmonary nodules is an efficient and safe diagnostic method with few complications.