Background: Diagnosis of fibrous tumors can be challenging and expensive due to the use of special stains.
Objective: Determine the usefulness of fluorescence microscopy in the evaluation of elastic tissue patterns on hematoxylin-eosin-stained slides.
Methods: In total, 228 slides representing different fibrous tumors were evaluated for their elastic tissue patterns by fluorescence microscopy, and sensitivity and specificity were determined for relevant comparisons.
Results: Fluorescence microscopy was found to be useful, especially for distinguishing dermatofibroma from dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans and dermatomyofibroma from other fibrous tumors.
Limitations: In some cases, excessive background staining made patterns difficult to interpret.
Conclusion: Evaluation of elastic tissue patterns by fluorescence microscopy in fibrous tumors is a cheap and efficient means to further delineate these often challenging tumors.
Keywords: dermatopathology; fibrous tumors; neoplasms; scars.
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