Histopathological spectrum of cutaneous leishmaniasis in North West Frontier Province
Keywords:
Cutaneous leishmaniasis, histopathology, LT bodiesAbstract
Objectives The objective of the study was to determine various histological spectrum ofcutaneous leishmaniasis in NWFP and to detect if there were any other useful histologicalfindings in addition to the detection of amastigotes, which could help in the diagnosis.Materials and methods Total number of patients included in the study was 36. These patientswere referred from various areas of NWFP. All except one were males. Their age rangedbetween 8-60 years. The duration of illness was from 3-32 weeks. A skin biopsy wasperformed from the most typical lesion from each patient. The biopsy slide was stained withH&E stain and viewed under a microscope by a single expert. The histopathological findingswere noted in accordance to uniform criteria.Results The confirmation of the diagnosis was done by the detection of amastigotes (LTbodies) in the slides. They were detected in 11 out of 36 patients (30.55%). The other mostsignificant finding detected in all the slides was the presence of a mixed inflammatory cellinfiltrate in the superficial dermis.Conclusion It is concluded that the chances of picking up of amastigotes in the biopsy slidesin not high. Hence, the presence of dense mixed inflammatory cell infiltrate in superficialdermis must be considered as a diagnostic feature in the absence of LT bodies.References
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