Conclusions
	Thyroid FNAB is a procedure that allows an accurate and cost-effective preoperative identification of malignant thyroid nodules. Its routine use leads to a reduction in the number of unnecessary thyroidectomies and, therefore, reduces surgical morbidity and mortality and costs of patient management. It also allows a prompt identification and treatment of thyroid malignancies and provides guidance for the type of surgery. However, FNAB is a simple procedure only apparently because it requires multidisciplinary expertise. To obtain best results, the personnel involved in all FNAB steps should receive specific training, work in close cooperation and maintain an adequate workload. The two main limitations, inadequate sampling and “indeterminate” diagnoses can be reduced by experience although not eliminated. The use of ancillary techniques, such as immunohistochemistry and RT-PCR may provide help in refining the diagnosis in “indeterminate” cases, although no single marker is ideal and a standardized approach is not presently available. In order to optimize thyroid nodule management, it is recommended that every Institution makes clinical guidelines taking into account FNAB results in conjunction with clinical data and local thyroid cancer epidemiological data.