Wuchereria bancrofti and Cytology: A Retrospective Analysis of 110 Cases from an Endemic Area.

BACKGROUND: Wuchereriasis is a significant cause of chronic morbidity. It can affect any organ/tissue in the body. Fine-needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) is an easy method for its detection. A comprehensive analysis of the various facets involved has not been discussed in detail in any publication. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A twenty-six year (February 1994 to January 2020) retrospective audit of all patients who were cytologically diagnosed with wuchereriasis was performed. Data regarding age, sex, organ/tissue involved, and presence of co-existing disease were noted. Hematoxylin and eosin (H and E) and May-Grünwald-Giemsa (MGG) stained slides were screened for microfilaria, adult worm, larval forms, microfilaria ghosts, epithelioid cell granuloma, and eosinophils. RESULTS: Audit yielded 19,323 cases of which 110 had wuchereriasis giving an incidence of 0.57%. The 11-30 year age group accounted for 41.8% cases. Male: female ratio was 1.04:1. Duration of disease at presentation ranged from 3 days to 24 years. Lymph node was the commonest site involved (40%), followed by soft tissue (23.6%) and female breast (14.5%). Highest parasitic load was encountered in female breast aspirates. Microfilaria bancrofti was seen in 105 (95.4%) cases. In the five cases where microfilaria bancrofti was not encountered, diagnosis was established by the presence of adult gravid female worm (2 cases), coiled larvae (2 cases), and both adult gravid female worm and coiled larvae (1 case). Microfilaria ghosts were seen in 18.2% cases. Coexisting benign and malignant diseases were encountered in 17.3% and 13.6% cases, respectively. CONCLUSION: FNAC provides a simple and inexpensive means of detecting wuchereriasis and is preferred over histopathology. All stages of development of this nematode in human beings are identified in cytology. Microfilaria ghost is a useful clue in screening. The presence of granuloma and eosinophilic infiltrate indicates tissue reaction only. Patients with asymptomatic microfilaraemia should be reported in cytology as they merit treatment.

Complement factor H gene polymorphisms and vivax malaria associated thrombotic microangiopathy.

Acute kidney injury (AKI) occurs in about 1% of cases of malaria; however, in these cases, the mortality rate can be as high as 45%. Thrombotic microangiopathy (TMA) as a cause of AKI in malaria is rare with only a handful cases documented in literature so far. Alternate complement pathway (ACP) dysregulation as a major mechanism of injury in the development of thrombotic microangiopathies is well known. It is proposed that patients with preexisting defects in ACP are usually clinically silent, until stress condition such as infections help manifest them. Herein, we describe the presence of two complement factor H (CFH) variants in an 8-year-old female with vivax malaria associated TMA. The complement workup confirmed dysregulated ACP and revealed two single-nucleotide polymorphisms in CFH gene, i.e. exon-7 rs1061147 (p.Ala243Ala) and exon-9 rs1061170 (p.His402Tyr) which predisposed this patient to develop TMA precipitated by vivax malaria.

Fine needle aspiration cytology of paediatric soft tissue tumours highlighting challenges in diagnosis of benign lesions and unusual malignant tumours.

INTRODUCTION: The type of soft tissue lesions seen in children differs from that seen in adults. The role of fine needle aspiration (FNA) cytology in their diagnosis is not well documented. AIM: To study the cytopathological spectrum of paediatric soft tissue tumours to highlight uncommon benign and malignant lesions and the challenges in their diagnosis. METHODS: A 3-year retrospective audit of all paediatric soft tissue FNA cytology cases from 2015 to 2017 was performed. Smears were reviewed along with cell block immunocytochemistry and follow-up histopathology of resected specimens wherever available. RESULTS: A total of 127 cases were reviewed, which included 72 benign and 55 malignant soft tissue tumours. Uncommon lesions described herein are myxoid fibrohistiocytic tumour, myxoma, lipoblastoma, Bednar tumour, malignant extra-renal rhabdoid tumour and desmoplastic small round cell tumour. Histopathology confirmation was available in 25 cases, out of which 16 cases were completely concordant. In eight cases, all benign diagnoses, histopathology provided more accurate subtyping than FNA. These included cases of lipoblastoma, myxoma and spindle cell haemangioma. CONCLUSION: FNA cytology of paediatric soft tissue tumours is accurate in classifying lesions as benign or malignant which helps in treatment planning. Immunocytochemistry performed on cell blocks is useful for subtyping malignant lesions.

Spectrum of renal disease in HIV-infected children: report of five cases.

There is a paucity of literature on renal diseases associated with HIV infection in Asian countries. Renal disease in HIV-infected children can involve the glomerulus, interstitium, tubules or blood vessels of the kidney. In this case series, five HIV-infected children with various forms of renal disease are reported. The renal pathology included HIV-associated nephropathy, collapsing focal segmental glomerulosclerosis without tubular changes, tubule-interstitial nephritis and minimal change disease (MCD). Case five fulfilled the classification criteria for childhood polyarteritis nodosa (PAN). It is important to screen all HIV-infected children for renal disease to enable detection at an early stage.

Infectious and non-infectious complications in primary immunodeficiency disorders: an autopsy study from North India.

BACKGROUND: Primary immunodeficiency disorders (PID) include a wide spectrum of inherited disorders characterised by functional abnormalities of one or more components of the immune system. Recent updates from the genomic data have contributed significantly to its better understanding with identification of new entities. Diagnosis is always challenging due to their variable clinical presentation. With the evolution of molecular diagnosis, many of these children are being diagnosed early and offered appropriate therapy. However, in developing countries, early diagnosis is still not being made: as a result these patients succumb to their disease. Autopsy data on PID is notably lacking in the literature with histopathological evaluation of PID being limited to rare case reports. OBJECTIVE: To analyse the clinical, immunologic (including mutational) and morphologic features at autopsy in 10 proven and suspected cases of primary immunodeficiency disorders diagnosed at our Institute over the past decade. METHODS: Study includes a detailed clinico-pathological analysis of 10 proven and suspected cases of primary immunodeficiency disorders. RESULTS: A varied spectrum of infectious and non-infectious complications were identified in these cases of which fungal infections were found to be more frequent compared with viral or bacterial infections. Rare and novel morphological findings, like granulomatous involvement of the heart in a patient with chronic granulomatous disease, systemic amyloidosis in a teenage girl with X-linked agammaglobulinemia, are highlighted which is distinctly lacking in the literature. CONCLUSIONS: The present study is perhaps the first autopsy series on PID. Even in the molecular era, such analysis is still important, as correlation of pathological features with clinical symptoms provides clues for a timely diagnosis and appropriate therapeutic intervention.

Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia With Hodgkin and Reed-Sternberg (HRS) Cells: A Potential Diagnostic Pitfall in Lymph Node Biopsies.

Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is known to undergo Richter transformation in a proportion of cases. Transformation into Hodgkin lymphoma has been described in a minority of the cases. However, CLL rarely also shows Hodgkin and Reed-Sternberg cells with a classic morphology and the immunophenotype of Hodgkin lymphoma, even when not in transformation. The presence of these Hodgkin and Reed-Sternberg cells in CLL can cause a diagnostic dilemma.

Temporal aneurysmal bone cyst: cost-effective method to achieve gross total resection.

Aneurysmal bone cyst (ABC) is a vascular benign bony expansile lesion. The treatment is gross total resection. Surgery for a skull base aneurysmal bone cyst poses a significant challenge because of its vascularity and the adjacent neurovascular structures. We present the case of a young male with a temporal aneurysmal bone cyst who underwent gross total resection of the lesion. The external carotid artery (ECA) was temporarily clamped to cut off the vascular supply. There was no intraoperative event, and the patient made a good postoperative clinical recovery. This technique was used as an alternative to subselective endovascular embolization of the ECA branches. This case represents a simple yet cost-effective surgical technique to control bleeding for a highly vascular lesion such as ABCs, especially in resource-deficient countries.

Sensory cutaneous nerve fine-needle aspiration in Hansen's disease: A retrospective analysis of our experience.

BACKGROUND: Leprosy affects peripheral nerves. As Mycobacterium leprae has unique tropism for Schwann cells, thickened sensory cutaneous nerves provide an easy target for the detection of lepra bacilli and other changes associated with the disease. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The data of patients with sensory cutaneous nerve involvement were retrieved from our record for the period January 2006 to December 2014. The hematoxylin and eosin (H and E)- and May-Grünwald-Giemsa (MGG)-stained slides were screened for Schwann cells, granuloma, and necrosis. Modified Ziehl-Neelsen (ZN)-stained smears were searched for lepra bacilli and globi. Morphological index was calculated in multibacillary lesions. RESULT: Twenty-nine sensory cutaneous nerves were aspirated in 23 patients. While 15 cases showed skin and nerve involvement, 8 cases showed only nerve involvement. Terminal cutaneous branch of the radial nerve was most often aspirated. No motor loss was observed after aspiration. Five cytologic pictures were seen - Epithelioid cell granuloma only in 6 cases, epithelioid cell granuloma with necrosis in 1 case, epithelioid cell granuloma with lepra bacilli in 3 cases, necrosis with lepra bacilli in 1 case, and only lepra bacilli in 12 cases. Morphological index ranged from 20% to 80%. CONCLUSION: Sensory cutaneous nerve fine-needle aspiration (FNA) is a feasible, viable, effective, and safe procedure. It adds to diagnostic FNA yield in patients with concomitant skin involvement and offers a way to evaluate patients with only nerve involvement. Calculation of morphological index allows prognostication and may have a role in assessing response to therapy and/or relapse.

Correlation of eosinophilic structures with detection of acid-fast bacilli in fine needle aspiration smears from tuberculous lymph nodes: Is eosinophilic structure the missing link in spectrum of tuberculous lesion?

BACKGROUND: Acid-fast bacilli (AFB) is not seen in all necrotic tuberculous lesions. If the subset of tuberculous lesions which yield positive result for AFB can be identified, it would save on time and manpower besides optimizing use of resources. A prospective study was undertaken to assess if presence of eosinophilic structures (ESs) in necrotic tuberculous lesions correlated with the presence of AFB. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients referred for fine needle aspiration cytology for evaluation of lymphadenopathy between July 2012 and June 2013 were analyzed. The hematoxylin and eosin and May-Grünwald-Giemsa stained slides were screened for epithelioid cell granuloma, ES and necrosis and Ziehl Neelsen stained smears for AFB. RESULT: One hundred and eight tuberculous lymph nodes yielded necrotic material on aspiration. Four cytologic pictures were seen: (a) ES(+) AFB(+) in 58.33%, (b) ES(+) AFB(-) in 20.37%, (c) ES(-) AFB(+) in 9.26% (d) ES(-) AFB(-) in 12.04% cases. Overall AFB was found in 67.59% cases, out of which 58.33% correlated with the presence of ES while 9.26% were seen in smears without ES. CONCLUSION: Presence of ESs should be included in the morphological description of tuberculous lesions. In the absence of granulomas, they indicate tuberculous nature of the lesion. Presence of ES mandates a search for AFB as probability of finding AFB is high in such lesions. Significance of ES lies in their presence and not in their absence. Eosinophilic structures appear to be the missing link in the spectrum of tuberculous lesion.

Renal actinomycosis.

Actinomycosis of the kidney is rare and less than 50 cases have been reported in the English literature. Reported presentations are pyelonephritis, renal abscesses or pyonephrosis. To date, one case of actinomycosis associated necrotising papillitis has been reported. We describe the second case of such a rare association of actinomycosis with papillary necrosis.

Bilateral sertoli-leydig cell tumor in a primigravida: a rare case.

We present a unique case of incidentally discovered bilateral Sertoli Leydig cell tumour in a primigravida who displayed no features of virilization. The apha fetoprotein levels were elevated. Magnetic resonance imaging was suggestive of ovarian tumors, possibly germ cell tumor. Bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy was performed and histopathology showed features of Sertoli Leydig cell tumor with intermediate to poor differentiation. Immunohistochemistry was positive for calretinin and inhibin, while cytokeratin was negative. Four courses of bleomycin-, etoposide- and cisplatin-based chemotherapy regimen was started, but the patient aborted while receiving the second cycle of chemotherapy. She received the remaining two cycles of chemotherapy and is now on close follow up with monitoring of serum inhibin levels to detect any tumor recurrence. Bilateral Sertloli Leydig cell tumor has not been reported previously in a pregnant female. The aim of this article is to describe the clinical, radiological and pathological features and management of this rare entity.