Codetection of pulmonary tuberculosis and toxoplasmosis in a pediatric bronchoalveolar lavage specimen: A cytologist's assistance to clinical management.

BACKGROUND: Toxoplasmosis causes serious and sometimes life-threatening disease in immunocompromised patients like organ transplant recipients, immunodeficiency disorders or HIV-infected individuals. The co-occurrence of toxoplasmosis in a respiratory sample harboring tuberculosis (TB) may be missed especially in an area endemic for the latter infection. CASE REPORT: A 10-year-old child presented with complaints of fever with loss of appetite and weight. Based on radiological and clinical features, a presumptive diagnosis of pulmonary TB was made and bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) performed for cytological and microbiological confirmation. Smears from BAL showed numerous lymphocytes along with few ciliated columnar epithelial cells. Ziehl-Neelsen stain for acid-fast bacilli was positive. The Giemsa-stained cytosmears also showed clusters of crescent-shaped tachyzoites of toxoplasma gondii in a background of lymphocytes. The patient was initiated on anti-tubercular therapy with marked clinical improvement. CONCLUSION: A diligent screening of cytosmears for a possible coinfection in a TB-positive sample is essential for the cytopathologists to detect coexisting toxoplasmosis, which is a rare but treatable disease.

Incidental detection of microfilaria in cyst fluid of Mucinous cystadenocarcinoma of ovary: A rare case report.

INTRODUCTION: Filariasis is a major health problem in certain parts of India. Microfilaria detection on exfoliative and fluid cytology is extremely rare and it is even very rare to find microfilaria coexistent with neoplastic lesions. PRESENTATION OF CASE: A 45-year-old nulliparous female, who presented with complaints of lower abdominal swelling and pain. Initially, a clinical diagnosis of cystadenoma was made. Ascitic fluid cytology of the patient showed 3-dimensional clusters of cells along with an occasional microfilaria. On histopathology, a diagnosis of Mucinous cystadenocarcinoma of ovary was made. DISCUSSION: Most common cause of lymphatic filariasis is W. bancrofti followed by Brugia species and it affects young adults. The adult form of the filaria lodge in lymph vessels, and due to lymphatic blockage in neoplasms they appear in tissue fluid or on surface material. It is the first case report of microfilaria being detected in ovarian cystic fluid cytology in a patient of Mucinous cystadenocarcinoma of ovary. CONCLUSION: Filaria is an incidental finding in most of the cases, hence, cytopathologist should be vigilant and careful screening of all the slides should be done, especially in a country like India, where it is highly endemic.