Case report: Macrodont mandibular second premolars, a hereditary dental anomaly.

BACKGROUND: Macrodontia or megadontia is a rare dental anomaly that refers to teeth that appear larger than normal. Generalised macrodontia may be associated with certain medical conditions and syndromes. Isolated macrodontia involves single teeth, might be the result of teeth fusion and is mainly seen in the incisor area. CASE REPORTS: This paper describes two unrelated cases presenting with bilateral macrodont second lower premolars and the treatment provided. One case demonstrated the anomaly in both the patient and his father. CONCLUSION: This case report suggests for the first time in the literature the genetic aetiology and heritability, as a possible autosomal dominant trait, of this rare dental anomaly.

Persistent median artery in the carpal tunnel: anatomy, embryology, clinical significance, and review of the literature.

The median artery usually regresses after the eighth week of intrauterine life, but in some cases it persists into adulthood. The persistent median artery (PMA) passes through the carpal tunnel of the wrist, accompanying the median nerve. During anatomical dissection in our department, we found two unilateral cases of PMA originating from the ulnar artery. In both cases the PMA passed through the carpal tunnel, reached the palm, and anastomosed with the ulnar artery, forming a medio-ulnar type of superficial palmar arch. In addition, in both cases we observed a high division of the median nerve before entering the carpal tunnel. Such an artery may result in several complications such as carpal tunnel syndrome, pronator syndrome, or compression of the anterior interosseous nerve. Therefore, the presence of a PMA should be taken into consideration in clinical practice. This study presents two cases of PMA along with an embryological explanation, analysis of its clinical significance, and a review of the literature. The review of the literature includes cases observed during surgical procedures or anatomical dissections. Cases observed by means of imaging techniques were not included in the study.

Immunohistochemical staining of neoplastic and inflammatory plasma cell lesions in feline tissues.

Two cases of feline plasmacytoma and nine cases of reactive plasma cell proliferations were examined for the presence of cytoplasmic immunoglobulin light chain types and heavy chain classes, by the peroxidase-anti-peroxidase technique on sections of formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissues. This immunohistochemical technique is an important aid to conventional histological techniques. It helps to differentiate between neoplastic and dense inflammatory plasma cell proliferations by determining the presence of one, or more than one, light chain types in the cells, which corresponds with their neoplastic or reactive nature.

An immunohistochemical study of canine extramedullary plasma cell tumours.

Twenty-three cases of dog plasma cell tumours were investigated for the presence of monoclonal cytoplasmic immunoglobulin light chain types and heavy chain classes. The peroxidase-antiperoxidase method was applied to formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissues, available as stored blocks. Twenty tumours showed a monoclonal light chain type and heavy chain class pattern, two showed a monoclonal light chain type and a biclonal heavy chain class pattern, findings which confirmed the neoplastic nature of the plasma cells. One tumour did not stain with any of the antisera. The results indicate that the method reliably establishes the monoclonality and, consequently, the neoplastic nature of plasma cell proliferations.