Wandering Spleen Presenting As Gastric Mass: A Rare Case

Wandering or ectopic spleen is a rare condition in which spleen is located outside its normal location. Wandering spleen is an incidental finding with a reported incidence of <0.2%, fewer than 500 cases reported worldwide in literature. It presents as a diagnostic challenge as it can easily mimic a neoplastic mass, an abscess, or an organized hematoma. Ultrasonography and contrast tomography are useful radiological methods in the diagnosis of wandering spleen. We report here autopsy case of a 51-year-old male with wandering spleen in gastric wall diagnosed on histopathology but presented as gastric mass mimicking malignancy. This case highlights the importance of radiology and histopathology in the diagnosis of an ectopic spleen. In the absence of spleen on radiology at a normal site and with a presence of intra-abdominal mass, the clinician should keep in mind ectopic spleen as a differential diagnosis

Splenic tumours--autopsy study of ten years.

Human spleen, though being the largest component of reticuloendothelial system, is a very rare site of tumor metastases. Splenic metastases are usually seen as part of multi-organ involvement. Autopsy study conducted over a period of 10 years revealed that the incidence of neoplastic involvement of spleen was 1.45% (70/4812). Primary malignant involvement of spleen was also noted to be a rare entity in present study.

Allergic fungal rhinosinusitis--a case report.

Allergic fungal rhinosinusitis is a unique disorder characterised by specific immunological hypersensitivity to certain fungal antigens usually presenting with nasal polyps and characteristic CT findings. It is a noninvasive disease and on histopathology shows formation of allergic mucin containing numerous eosinophils, charcot leyden crystals and scattered fungal hyphae. Many cases have been reported in western journals but it has been rarely reported in Indian literature. This case is probably the first case in India. It is presented here for its rarity.

Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia and its association with other opportunistic infections in AIDS--an autopsy report of five cases.

Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia (PCP) has been reported as one of the opportunistic pathogens in AIDS. The significance of this pathogen in AIDS is well established so that, the diagnosis of PCP in an adult simultaneously establishes the diagnosis of AIDS. This point is well emphasised in the CDC case definition of AIDS. In western literature, the occurrence of PCP in AIDS is widely reported. However, in Indian literature only sporadic case reports have been documented. This study reports 5 cases of PCP encountered amongst 34 AIDS-autopsies studied. PCP alone was present in 2 cases. It is worth noting that it was simultaneously associated with cryptococcosis, tuberculosis and CMV in 3 remaining cases, highlighting the need for extensive investigations even after establishing the diagnosis of PCP in a known full blown AIDS patient.