Echinococcosis of bone: clinico-laboratory findings and differential diagnostic problems.

Twenty cases of echinococcosis affecting the skeleton are reported. These cases were diagnosed at the Pathology Department of KAT General Hospital over a 12 year period (1976-1988). The parasitosis involved individual bones or skeletal parts (spine 6, pelvis 6, femur 4, tibia 1, scapula 2 and maxilla 1).

Follicular thyroid adenoma: signet ring cell variant.

An unusual case of a microfollicular adenoma of the thyroid gland with signet-ring cells in a 36-year-old euthyroid man is described. Mucin stains demonstrated the presence of mainly neutral glycoproteins with focal participation of acidic groups. Immunohistochemical staining for thyroglobulin was strongly positive.

A combined immunohistochemical and histochemical approach on the differential diagnosis of giant cell epiphyseal neoplasms.

The histological similarities and the common localization are the main causes of difficulties concerning the differential diagnosis between giant cell tumor of bone and chondroblastoma. The purpose of the present study was to detect whether histochemistry and/or immunohistochemistry could help to make the distinction between these two entities easier. The study was based on cases of chondroblastoma and giant cell tumor of bone from patients in the 2nd and 3rd decades of life.

The contribution of immunohistochemistry to the differential diagnosis of primary and metastatic neoplasma of the central nervous system (CNS).

A series of 146 primary and metastatic neoplasms of the CNS were studied with a panel of monoclonal and polyclonal antibodies. The purpose of the study was to evaluate whether immunohistochemistry can help in the differential diagnosis and facilitate a more precise classification of CNS tumors. Neoplastic cells in glial tumors (astrocytomas, ependymomas, oligodendrocytomas) reacted strongly with GFAP.