Mirror movements or functional tremor masking organic tremor.

BACKGROUND: Functional tremors can be diagnosed based on clinical and physiologic criteria such as entrainment, suggestibility, distractibility, variable nature with the associated clinical history of psychosomatic co-morbidities. The current case report highlights the underrecognized utility of neurophysiology in the correct diagnosis of tremors, providing useful clinical and neurophysiologic insights into clinical and physiological assessment of tremors. CASE REPORT: A 62-year-old woman with a past medical history of polio was referred by a movement disorders neurologist for evaluation of tremor with concerns of a likely functional etiology. On first assessment there were findings notable for a possible organic etiology, but upon subsequent evaluation the tremor was noted to be variable and entrainable, suggestive of a functional etiology. Neurophysiological tremor study could identify an underlying organic tremor (likely of multi-factorial etiology). Tremor entrainment with contralateral hand tapping could be mirror movements or functional movements, as the underlying organic tremor was not entrained. The amplitude of mirrored movement was commensurate with the tapping amplitude. DISCUSSION: Functional tremors may mask an underlying organic tremor. Additionally, motor overflow which may happen especially with large amplitude movements may masquerade as mirror movements, which can be difficult to differentiate from an entrained functional tremor. Objective physiology and refinement of the current clinical and physiologic tremor evaluation techniques may help identify an underlying organic etiology.

Primary signet-ring cell carcinoma of lung: immunohistochemical study and comparison with non-pulmonary signet-ring cell carcinomas.

Signet-ring cell carcinoma (SRCC) of lung is a rare variant of pulmonary adenocarcinoma. In view of this rarity, the question of whether an SRCC is primary pulmonary or metastatic arises frequently because the majority of SRCCs seen in lung are metastatic tumors having arisen in stomach, colon, or breast. On routine histologic examination it is difficult to distinguish between pulmonary SRCC from SRCC metastasizing from other organs. Thyroid transcription factor-1 (TTF-1) is a homeodomain-containing transcription factor that is almost exclusively expressed in thyroid and pulmonary epithelial cells. TTF-1 expression has been demonstrated in various neoplasms of lung; however, the expression of TTF-1 in SRCCs has not been investigated so far. In the present study, using an immunoperoxidase staining procedure on paraffin sections, we investigated the expression of TTF-1, cytokeratin 7, cytokeratin 20, and villin (a specific marker expressed in tumors of the digestive tract, renal proximal tubules, and hepatic bile ducts) in 32 SRCCs from various organs (17 lung, 5 breast, 5 stomach, and 5 colon). Fourteen (82.4%) of 17 pulmonary SRCCs exhibited TTF-1 positivity, whereas none of the SRCCs of other organs were positive for TTF-1. A cytokeratin profile (CK7+/CK20-) was identified in 94.1% of pulmonary SRCC, and although it differed from the profile exhibited in colonic SRCCs (CK7-/CK20+), a similar profile was seen in breast SRCCs and some SRCCs arising in the stomach. Villin was identified in 29.4% of pulmonary SRCCs and 20% (one case) arising in the breast. Although the pattern of villin immunostaining exhibited by nondigestive tract SRCCs (cytoplasmic) differed from those of digestive tract SRCCs (membranous), distinguishing between the two groups based on their pattern of immunostaining alone would be difficult. The results of this study indicate that TTF-1 is expressed in a high percentage of pulmonary SRCCs and is very specific and that TTF-1 would be extremely valuable in distinguishing pulmonary SRCCs from those arising in other organs.

Apoptotic index by Annexin V flow cytometry: adjunct to morphologic and cytogenetic diagnosis of myelodysplastic syndromes.

The myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) are clonal hematologic malignancies characterized by pancytopenia, dysplastic hematopoiesis, and a propensity to leukemic transformation. Increased apoptosis has been noted in MDS as a possible explanation for ineffective hematopoiesis, with lower levels in progression to and in de novo acute leukemia. Apoptosis can be measured by binding of Annexin V to exposed membrane phosphatidylserine. We postulated that the apoptotic index would aid in the differential diagnosis of MDS versus other hematopoietic diseases. We examined 33 bone marrow aspirates suspected of hematopoietic malignancy for apoptotic index by Annexin V analysis using a Becton Dickinson FACStar+ flow cytometer. The apoptotic index was expressed as the percentage of Annexin V-positive cells divided by total mononuclear cells in the gate. By standard morphologic analysis, 16 cases were diagnosed as MDS (9 refractory anemia [RA], 2 refractory anemia with ringed sideroblasts [RARS], 1 refractory anemia with excess of blasts [RAEB], 3 chronic myelomonocytic leukemia [CMML], and 1 unclassified), 11 as acute leukemia (AL), 6 as myeloproliferative disorders (MPD). Eight cases (uninvolved marrow of five patients with lymphoproliferative disorders [LPD], one patient with multiple myeloma, and two patients with anemia of chronic disease) served as nonneoplastic controls. A higher degree of apoptosis was observed in MDS (mean = 44.7%; range = 29.5--60%) compared with MPD (mean = 8.2%; range = 2.3--15.4%), AL (mean = 16.1%; range = 5.1--29.4%), and control marrow samples (mean = 11.6%; range = 1.5--21%). Additionally, the apoptotic index was significantly higher in MDS compared with MPD (P < 0.0001). In conclusion, a high apoptotic index occurs in MDS, supporting previous reports and suggesting that Annexin V analysis can be used as an adjunct in the diagnosis of MDS versus MPD. This would be particularly useful for the often-difficult distinction between early MDS and early MPD cases with equivocal morphology.

Granulomatous peritonitis after laparoscopic cholecystectomy mimicking pelvic endometriosis.

BACKGROUND: Spillage of bile or gallstones, a relatively common occurrence during laparoscopic cholecystectomy, is believed to be inconsequential, but we describe a case of postlaparoscopic granulomatous peritonitis mimicking endometriosis. CASE: A 20-year-old gravida 0 presented with chronic lower abdominal pain and dysmenorrhea. Laparoscopy showed red-brown pigmented pelvic adhesions, which on biopsy showed foreign-body-type granulomatous reaction, both suggesting endometriosis, but a history of laparoscopic cholecystectomy and a positive Fouchet's stain for bile gave the true etiology of the granulomatous reaction. CONCLUSION: With increasingly widespread use of laparoscopic cholecystectomy, and relatively common spillage of bile or gallstones at surgery, granulomatous peritonitis mimicking endometriosis might become more frequent.

Is repeated fine-needle aspiration cytology useful in the management of patients with benign nodular thyroid disease?

Management of nonneoplastic thyroid nodules (TN) diagnosed by fine-needle aspiration (FNA) is controversial. While clinical follow-up with repeat FNA for enlarging TN is recommended in some studies, others recommend repeat FNA in follow-up of all benign TN after several months or years, in order to identify possible misdiagnosed malignant lesions. This study was done to determine the usefulness of repeat FNA in patients with benign nodular thyroid disease. We studied 94 fine-needle reaspirations performed on 43 females and 2 males 48.2 +/- 17 years of age with benign nodular thyroid nodular disease. Four patients had 3 consecutive FNAs and 41 patients had 2 consecutive FNAs. All FNAs were carried out by the same endocrinologist in the same thyroid area or by cytopathologists. The average time elapsed between the two consecutive FNAs was 18.3 +/- 11.2 (range, 4-48) months. Of the 45 patients, 23 presented with increase in size of the nodule and the remaining 22 patients did not have any change in size at the time of repeat FNA. Identical cytologic diagnoses were rendered in 39 of the 45 patients who underwent 2 or 3 consecutive FNA. Repeat FNA did not result in detection of any malignant neoplasms. Thyroid resection in 7 patients with increased nodule size and pressure symptoms confirmed the cytologic impressions of benign thyroid nodular disease. Our results show that the routine performance of repeated FNA cytology in the follow-up of patients with benign nodular thyroid disease with or without any clinical changes is of limited usefulness. Clinical factors rather than repeat FNA may hold precedence in surgical management of patients with benign nodular thyroid disease.

Haemangiopericytoma of kidney: a report of 2 cases.

Haemangiopericytoma is a rare neoplasm of the kidney. There are no unique radiological or clinical identifiers that can aid in preoperative diagnosis. Surgery is the only reliable therapy, as both chemotherapy and radiotherapy have proven ineffective in several series. The outcome is difficult to predict, the only reliable predictor is presence or absence of metastasis. The rarity of this lesion prompts the report of these two cases.