Cyto-serological correlation in toxoplasma lymphadenitis: Is bypassing biopsy plausible?

Abstract

To study ten cases of toxoplasmic lymphadenitis (TL) in which the diagnosis was made by fine needle aspiration cytology and confirmed by subsequent serology. Retrospective study done over a period of five years. We retrieved ten cases of Toxoplasma lymphadenitis in which fine-needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) of lymph node was done after clinical examination. Serology with electrochemiluminescense was done in all the cases. The cytological features were characterised by microgranulomas, abundance of tingible body macrophages and absence of necrosis. Serologic testing for toxoplasma in all the cases revealed elevated titres. Lymphadenitis due to Toxoplasma infection should be considered in the diagnosis of unexplained lymphadenopathy at all sites, especially the cervical region. Serologic confirmation should be recommended for all suspected cases. FNAC diagnosis can eliminate the need for hospitalization and surgery. To the best of authors’ knowledge, this is 5 case series of cytodiagnosis of TL in the English literature and 2 in the Indian literature. This is the largest case series of cytodiagnosis of TL in the Indian literature and 2 largest in the world literature next to the one done by Haque et al.